


Worlds Apart

by TheSadisticMunchkin



Category: Night at the Museum (Movies), Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Ancient Egypt, Alternate Universe - Canon, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - College/University, Ancient Egypt, Big Bang Challenge, Domestic Violence, F/M, M/M, Pedophilia, Same Performer in Different Roles, Slow Build, Unresolved Romantic Tension, i didnt know there was a tag like that cool, it gets resolved eventually, kind of, natmbb fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-10
Updated: 2015-10-31
Packaged: 2018-04-23 20:01:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 32,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4890238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSadisticMunchkin/pseuds/TheSadisticMunchkin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Original Summary: After a bad fight between Larry and Ahk on what their relationship could be, the tablet starts to malfunction. Ahkmenrah is then transported to several alternate universes that are so different from each other. The only constant in all the universes, however, is the one thing he desperately wants to go home to: Larry Daley.</p><p>Better Summary: Ahkmenrah travels through different alternate universes and everything is much more complicated than they seem. Also the tablet is an asshole. What else is new?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The One Where It All Went Wrong

**Author's Note:**

> Hello friends!
> 
> So this is my entry to the Night at the Museum BIG BANG! Unless you already noticed it before, this is my only completed chaptered fic. That's because there is a deadline. I should probably do that more often, set deadlines for myself. 
> 
> Anyway, here it is. It's probably not as good as the other fics that will be posted alongside my own but at the very least, I am proud of my work. 
> 
> A VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO THE OTHER MEMBERS OF MY TEAM: May (three-edded-canadian) and Steph (demilarrydaley)! They kept me going in their own little ways and I couldn't be more grateful to have known them <3
> 
> As always, comment, kudos, hate, like or do whatever. Feedback is very much appreciated and I hope you enjoy reading this lovely fic as much as I enjoyed (cramming) writing it! :)

         Ahkmenrah loved many things.

 

         After being shut up in his sarcophagus for years, he started to learn more about the wonders of what it really is like to be in the 21st century. When he was in Cambridge, he was barely let out of his display case. Unless the janitor on duty in the night shift was nice, he would usually stay inside his glass case, watching and waiting. He didn’t know what he was waiting for. Not until he was released from his sarcophagus by a frightened night guard did he finally realize what he was waiting for.

 

         He was waiting to live again.

 

         So he went on and discovered all the amazing things the 21st century could offer. As long as Larry allowed it, he could do whatever he wanted. He microwaved popcorn on movie nights. He watched cat videos on YouTube with the miniatures. He learned how to DJ the day Nicky turned 16. He even went as far as successfully convincing Larry to bring him to a Taylor Swift concert.

 

         Ahkmenrah watched reality shows and played instruments he’d never even dreamed about. He was living a far more fulfilling life at night and every night his smile got bigger and bigger. He enjoyed this life, even if it was a half-life. A life only experienced at night up until the sun rose.  He honestly couldn’t ask for anything better.

 

         Well… maybe he does want one more thing.

 

         Larry Daley, guardian of Brooklyn. Larry, his savior and friend. The one he could trust more than anyone else. And he is hopelessly in love with him.

 

         He never told Larry in the years he’s been working in the museum. Larry was very professional and would not hesitate to scold any exhibits that toed the line. Although he was like that, he still loved to have fun with everybody else. Considering he let the museum have weekly parties. That’s why Ahkmenrah can’t help but fall in love with him. He’s been trying to push away those feelings for him for more than 6 years.

 

         He’s been denying those feelings ever since he first released him. Now he thinks he can’t really hide it anymore.

 

         “Larry, may I speak with you?” They were in the newly installed oceanic life exhibit when Ahk decided to confront Larry. He was practically shaking in his sandals and he took off his crown for now to stop himself from sweating. “What do you want to talk about, Ahk?” said Larry as he checked the whale display for any cracks in the glass case. Ahk was actually really grateful that Larry wasn’t looking directly at him because if he were, he would have seen how he was having trouble breathing.

 

         Larry only got 2 minutes of silence in response and he straightened up to look at the pharaoh. Ahk was fidgeting with his crown and ducked his head the second Larry looked at him. Strange. “Ahk, are you okay?” Larry took one step closer, which made Ahk take a shaky step back. _Ahkmenrah, what in Khonsu’s name are you doing?_ “Ahk, you got to tell me what’s wrong so I can help you. That’s kinda my job.”

 

         Even with Larry’s lighthearted jabs, Ahkmenrah still felt his head buzzing and his hands shake. _You are a king! Act like one!_ Ahk closed his eyes tightly, took a deep breath and decided to finally look up at the night guard. “Larry, I—” He was eating his words and his dead heart by day was beating so fast he was getting lightheaded. Larry was about to speak. He could feel it. He should just end this now before he does something stupid like run.

 

         “Larry, I like you.”

 

         It’s out.

 

         With the look of confusion on Larry’s face, he’s not quite sure he feels better about it being out. “Thanks? I like you too. Well, I like everyone here. Probably not the lions though—” He doesn’t understand. Ahk grits his teeth behind closed lips and takes a few steps closer to Larry. “No that is not what I meant, Larry.” The night guard immediately shut up about his disdain for the lions to stare at Ahkmenrah.

 

         Then something clicked in Larry’s mind and he started panicking.

 

         _Ahk likes him._

 

         “A-Ahk um… that’s not—no. Just no.” Ahk’s world started to crumble around him and Larry could feel the walls tumbling down onto him. He’s never seen Ahkmenrah cry before but the pharaoh’s tears were dangerously close to falling. _Shit_. “Larry I don’t understand.” He’s trying to keep his composure. His jaw is clenched, his hands stiff at his sides and grey eyes glassy with unshed tears.

 

         He’s doing it again. Larry is going to hurt him. Larry is going to fuck up and leave Ahkmenrah as an empty shell. And then he will watch as Ahk slowly starts to hate him or worse… leave him for someone else immediately after. He’s gone through years of the same thing with Erica, Rebecca and heck even Amelia. Ahk is probably the happiest man he’s ever had the privilege to meet and have in his life. He can’t bear to strip that beautiful smile away from his lips because of him.

 

         He’s not ready to get hurt and he’s not ready to hurt him.

 

         So he resorts to one thing: pushing him away.

 

         “You’re making a mistake, Ahk.” Larry turned around and Ahk has never felt his walls come down as hard as it did now. He has never felt such pain until now. “You and I will never work. You’re pretty much dead.” Strike one. “And you… you’re young! Barely 20 years old. You don’t know anything about these kinds of things.” Strike two. “And I don’t think I could bring myself to love you back.”

 

         Strike three.

 

         He knows this is not Larry. Larry would never be so crude like this. Especially when it came to someone’s feelings. But there he was, his back hunched and ignoring his very presence and the fact that he is too in love with him to never even consider not knowing any better. “You’re lying.” This is the only way Ahk can cope with what Larry is saying. He’s just messing with him. He’ll turn around and give him that familiar smile and everything will be good.

 

         Larry did turn around and hope sprang in his heart. But he didn’t smile. His face was blank and his eyes were dark. No. This wasn’t happening. He didn’t even get a chance to explain why. He would have thought it would be obvious why he developed these feelings. “Ahk, get over these irrational feelings. I—” Ahkmenrah had heard enough. He held a single shaking finger up and the night guard shut up. A flicker of emotion passed through Larry’s eyes but Ahk’s own eyes were too blurry to see it.

 

         “I am many things Larry Daley, Guardian of Brooklyn.” He missed the slight flinch Larry did when he used his old title. “But irrational is not one of them. Neither is ignorant of what I feel. You, however, are the irrational one.” Larry’s blank face fell into an expression of sadness and if Ahk looked closer, he would have seen guilt. “Dismissing my feelings as if I don’t understand what it’s like to love someone. If you don’t remember, I am actually far older than you.”

 

         “And you want to know something else, Larry?” The night guard’s heart was filled with devastating anticipation for Ahk’s next statement. Ahk finally let a single teardrop fall down his cheek and Larry had the overwhelming longing to wipe it away. “The only mistake I made was falling in love with you.” Larry didn’t want to hear that. Oh god he’s fucked up already. “Ahk—” he started, but Ahk didn’t even let him speak anymore. All he did was put his crown back on his head with the regality of a king and left Larry standing in the middle of the exhibit.

 

         Larry sat down on one of the benches next to the whale display and tried to blink back tears. He did it. He fucking did it. He pushed Ahk away so hard he made him what he feared too early. He made him empty. He made him angry. He’s probably going to be the reason why Ahk won’t smile as much anymore. _I fucked up. I fucked up. I fucked up,_ he repeated inside his head so many times that he started to say it out loud.

 

         “I fucked up,” he whispered the exact moment Teddy walked into the exhibit. “Language, Lawrence! May I ask why our pharaoh friend walked out of here in such a hurry?” Larry looked up and Teddy’s signature smile dropped immediately from his lips. “Lawrence, is everything alright?” The man quickly sat by Larry’s side and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

 

         The night guard stayed silent for a few minutes before he put his head in his hands. “Teddy I—I screwed up.” He took a deep breath and resorted to rubbing his temples with his index fingers. “Ahk told me that he… developed feelings for me and gosh—Teddy! I-I can’t be in another relationship. I can’t hurt him.” Teddy remained silent and Larry took that as a sign to keep going.

 

         “Then he called me irrational and damn it Teddy, I can’t deny that! I pushed him away. I pushed him away too hard. Now he’s completely heartbroken and I…” Larry shook his head and stood up to pace around the floor. “I hate myself for it! Ahk deserved none of that from me and I don’t know what to do to fix this!” His voice progressively got louder and louder which startled a few schools of fish into hiding behind the fake corals.

 

         “Lawrence, if I may put it as young Nicholas says it, please shut the hell up.”

 

         Larry, unsurprisingly, followed.

 

         “Did you let Ahkmenrah tell you why he has developed these feelings for you? Did you dismiss him immediately after he told you?” Well shit, if he put it that way it made him feel even worse. “I – maybe? Oh god…” Teddy stood up from his position on the bench and placed two firm hands on Larry’s shoulders. “I suggest you try that again. Listen to him. Let him listen to your side. _Communicate_. That was one of my mistakes before with Sacagawea and I do not wish for you to make the same mistake.”

 

         _Communicate._

 

That was one of the reasons why he and Erica divorced. It was also the reason why Rebecca left him. He was sorely bad at communicating with them. And he did it again with Ahkmenrah. The former president then placed his hands behind his back and shot a pointed look at Larry. “I understand that you do not want to hurt him Lawrence. I truly do. I suggest you talk to him of your fears and him with you.”

        

         “And if he doesn’t listen?”

        

         “Perseverance, Lawrence! If he genuinely cares for you, and in my opinion I believe he does, he will listen.”

        

         _Listen._

Now that is something he’s good at.

        

         “I’m just scared, Teddy,” Larry said as he ran a single hand through his hair. The former president smiled in understanding and placed a hand on the night guard’s shoulder.

        

         “Truthfully Lawrence, I am still scared that Sacagawea will grow tired of me. And yet…” Teddy’s smile then turned reminiscent in nature as he thought of his love. “She still smiles at me as if I put the moon and stars up in the sky by myself. I believe I don’t deserve her.”

        

         He then gave Larry a pointed look before continuing. “Talk to Ahkmenrah. If there is one thing I am certain about our young pharaoh, it is that his heart will always be in the right place.”

        

         “But he wanted to give his heart to _me_ ,” said Larry slowly.

        

         “I stand by my point, Lawrence.”

        

         Teddy walked him out of Oceanic Life before Larry’s legs acquired a mind of their own and ran towards Ahk’s exhibit. Only two words were running through his mind: _Listen and Communicate._ He intended to do exactly that.

* * *

         He was foolish to think that Larry could ever like him back.

        

         As Ahkmenrah paced back and forth in his exhibit he started to run through their entire conversation in his head again. Tears gathered in his eyes and he tried to wipe them away with a hand that roughly rubbed his face. No. He was a pharaoh. “Then why am I not acting like one over some… _man?_ ” he asked himself as he pushed his crown off of its place on his sarcophagus where it made a deafening clanging sound.

        

         His jackal guards gave the young pharaoh a stone cold look and usually Ahk would laugh at that analogy but today obviously was not one of those days. Ahk was never one to throw tantrums, even when he was a child. He may have cried over the occasional scratch or the times when his father would blatantly _not_ let him keep the snake he found near the Nile. Yet there was Larry Daley.

        

         There was that _man_ who let him feel _life_ again.

        

         “I cannot stop loving him if I tried,” he said more to himself than to his guards who turned their backs as they sensed their pharaoh needed some privacy. He walked towards his crown and picked it up. He examined it for any dents before he placed it on his head. Just when he straightened the crown on his head, the tablet started to glow behind him.

        

         He turned around and furrowed his eyebrows at the tablet. “What on earth?” He walked towards it and took it off the wall for examination. The tablet’s light grew brighter the longer he touched it, so bright that he had to squint his eyes just so he wouldn’t be blinded by its glow. He didn’t register the footsteps behind him as the tablet continued to glow brighter. “What is wrong with you?” he asked as he slowly placed a single finger on the middle piece.

        

         _“Ahkmenrah!”_

        

         Ahk’s finger touched the middle piece before he was able to comprehend who called him and suddenly the world started spinning around him. His bones were on fire and his skin felt as if a thousand pin needles per second were pricking it. He tried to scream but nothing came out of his mouth. It was like his entire body was being pushed into itself, almost as if he was going to be wrapped up in a small box.

 

            Then there was nothing but a tablet dropping to the floor where Ahkmenrah used to be.

        

         What Ahk didn’t know was that Larry was a witness to the entire thing. He didn’t know that the man dropped to his knees to scream at the tablet to bring him back. He didn’t know that the rest of the exhibits crowded around his own to watch the hyperventilating night guard on the floor.

       

         All he knew was the surrounding darkness that slowly enveloped him until he felt absolutely nothing.

 


	2. The One Where He Quits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First Alternate Universe: Ahk finds himself in a familiar situation and the one he needs the most is not even there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After this chapter, the next chapters are going to be MUCH longer. Trust me. I even told myself they would be short but no. They're not short. They're fucking long. Brace yourselves.

Silence.

 

         There was nothing but silence.

 

         The first thing he noticed was that he couldn’t move. He thought maybe it was morning but then he realized that he was thinking. _Thinking_. He doesn’t think in the morning. He’s dead in the morning so it was obviously nighttime now. Why wasn’t he out of his sarcophagus if it was nighttime? Where was Larry? His head started pounding from all the questions he was asking himself so he stopped, took deep breaths and opened his eyes.

 

         Darkness.

      

         This wasn’t the kind of darkness he was used to back in the museum. No. It was the same darkness he dealt with _before_ he was released from his sarcophagus. He still had his bandages wrapped around his head. It’s been a long time since he’s had his head wrapped. So long ago in fact that he couldn’t even remember when he stopped wrapping his head. As his brain slowly started to piece together what was happening, it finally clicked.

 

         He wasn’t free yet.

 

         That was why his bandages were all still in tact. That was why he wasn’t out of his sarcophagus. Larry hasn’t freed him yet. And if Larry didn’t free him... His thoughts came to a complete halt when he started to hear murmurs from outside of his sarcophagus. It sounded strangely like Teddy. He could even hear the horse’s hooves click on the floor as it slowly approached his current position. “There he is, Texas. Pharaoh Ahkmenrah.”

 

         Ahk heard a disgruntled sigh from Texas and the former president couldn’t help but chuckle softly. “It is odd, Texas. He’s quiet. Usually he’s banging on the cover of that sarcophagus, begging us to free him.” Teddy and Texas remained silent for a few seconds and Ahk almost entertained the idea that they already left him there. Ahk started to panic. This couldn't be happening. "If you ask me Texas, I would free him in a heartbeat if he did not scare the other exhibits so."

           

            _I won't scare them if you let me out!_ Ahk tried to say but the bandages around his mouth made it rather difficult to not only talk but breathe. He prayed to his gods above to help him keep his breathing at a normal pace. But he couldn't concentrate. His eyes started to fill with tears because _this was not supposed to happen._ In the midst of his struggles, he heard another pair of feet shuffle against the floor towards his sarcophagus.

           

            _Please, dear Ra, let it be Larry Daley._

           

            "Lawrence! My boy, you look more disheveled than yesterday."

 

            "Yeah well this is the last time you'll make those observations, Teddy. I'm hangin' up the uniform."

 

            "You're quitting?"

 

            "I'm sorry. I just..." There was a long silence from Larry. Ahk figured he must have been doing the squinty eye thing he does when he's trying to concentrate on something or comprehend a situation. Oh how he wishes to see it now.

 

            _Larry please don't go._

"I don't think I'm cut out for this night guard thing. I've got to find a better job, both in pay and in experience. I have a kid, you know? Would Nicky really be proud to have a _night guard_ as a father?"

           

            _He couldn't be more proud of you, Larry! Just don't go!_ Ahk struggled against his binds as Larry's fading footsteps echoed in his ears. _Let me out and I'll explain everything, Larry!_

           

            "You can get back to your place by yourself, right Teddy?"

 

            "Of course Lawrence. I wish you the best life you could live."  

 

            “You too, I guess? Maybe I’ll visit again sometime. Only… in the morning.” Then he knew he was gone. Ahk couldn’t help the tears in his eyes as he tried to keep his breathing even. This wasn’t happening. This _shouldn’t_ be happening. Larry was supposed to find out about the evil night guards. Larry was supposed to get the museum under control. Larry was supposed to stay one more night and save the day.

 

            Larry was supposed to save _him._

 

            Ahkmenrah couldn’t even tell if Teddy and Texas left. He almost completely forgot that the horse was even there because he was too preoccupied with his thoughts. _Stuck in his head_. Just like his years locked up and alone in the dark. Now he can’t help the sob that escaped his throat. He never liked this. Being locked up and almost forgotten were the reasons why he hated going back into his sarcophagus every morning.

           

            He didn’t like being alone anymore.

 

            “It’s almost sunrise, Texas. Let’s get back to our place before it is too late.”

 

            _No. Please don’t go._

 

            Before he could gather up any remaining energy to let out one last shout of help, he felt his heart slowly stop beating and the smell of his own rotting flesh go up his nostrils. Then he was still. The sun was up and the best he could do now was to wait until night was upon him once more.

* * *

            Fortunately for Ahkmenrah, when he’s dead in the morning, time flies by really quickly. Before he knew it, the sun was down and air filled his lungs. Well, as much air as he could get through the confined space he was in. Today was the day. Today was _supposed_ to be the day. Larry quit early and Ahkmenrah doubts he will come back unless he did something about it.

 

            A beat passed before he replayed what he just thought of in his head.

 

            _Unless he did something about it._

 

          That’s it. Ahkmenrah shifted into a position where his arms were in a good place to push his lid. It was a crazy idea, obviously. He was only able to do this only after Larry unlocked his sarcophagus in a fit of panic. The stone slab on top was probably still there too. None of those things were going to stop Ahk from trying. So the former pharaoh took a deep breath, readied himself carefully and pushed his sarcophagus lid up with as much strength as he could muster.

 

           _Thud._

 

         He would be lying if he didn’t think that was anticlimactic. Ahk focused solely on gathering his strength and closed his eyes tightly. _Think of the museum_ he told himself and pushed again. Nothing happened but it did result in a louder thud and a throbbing right hand. _Think of Jedediah, Octavius, Rexy and Dexter._ He pushed his lid another time but still nothing happened. With a bit more irritation and slight desperation, he clenched his fists as much as he could and breathed slowly for an entire minute.

 

          _Think about Nicky._

 

         The tablet outside started to glow but Ahk was stuck in darkness.

 

          _Think about Larry._

 

         With that thought in mind, Ahk opened his eyes with a stronger determination and pushed the lid with all his might. He didn’t notice the hinges fly off of his sarcophagus when he successfully threw the lid across the room. The egyptian exhibit was filled with the light of the tablet so bright that Ahk could see it through his dirty bandages. _I’m free._ Ahkmenrah sat up and quickly unwrapped the bandages around his head.

 

         With his bandages finally off, the bright light was more prominent and he quickly closed his eyes in surprise. “What in the world?” He shielded his eyes with one hand before he opened them to take a peek. Sure enough, the tablet’s light started to dim down but it still emitted a soft glow almost as if it was beckoning him to come closer. It wasn’t an exaggeration that he was absolutely pissed at the glowing hunk of metal.

  

         “You brought me into this! You are going to have to take me out!” He exclaimed as he angrily took the tablet from its place on the wall.

 

         Of course he also didn’t notice the 3 men behind him.

 

         He didn’t notice one of them form his hand into a fist.

 

         He did, however, notice the tap on his shoulder. When he turned around to acknowledge whatever wanted his attention he was plunged into total darkness once again when a hard punch was directed right in the middle of his face. The tablet clanged to the floor as Ahkmenrah submerged into unconsciousness.

* * *

 

         _“Let’s just take the tablet and be done with it!”_

 

_“Patience, little man! We have all night to take the tablet.”_

 

_“Oh really, hot shot? Because unlike **some** people, I need my beauty sleep.”_

 

_“Don’t know what kind of beauty **you’re** trying to make up.”_

 

_“Don’t tempt me, wise guy!”_

 

Ahkmenrah groaned at the sound of the muffled voices getting clearer and clearer.

 

_“Boys! Boys! I think our pharaoh friend is waking up.”_

 

That voice. He knows that voice. Ahk blinked his eyes rapidly and tried to get a hold of his surroundings. The first thing he realized was that he was tied up to a chair. Fantastic. The second thing he noticed was that he wasn’t wearing his normal clothes. He was clad in an all black ensemble with a black hoodie pulled over his head. It was a little bit disconcerting to wear something other than his robes and his crown.

 

         Right when Ahkmenrah’s vision was cleared up entirely, he immediately identified the people standing in front of him. The ex-nightguards that hired Larry stood there where the head of them, Cecil, was staring right in his face with the most annoying grin plastered on his lips. “Hey there, Ahk. How’re you doing?” said Cecil as he pulled up a chair to sit right in front of the former pharaoh.

 

         That was an honest-to-Ra stupid question he asked. After everything he has done to him; locked him up, left him crying for help and now punching him in the face? And he thinks he has the right to ask…

        

         “How am I _doing?”_

 

         A brief silence passed before Ahkmenrah spoke again, livid and blood boiling.

 

         “How do you think I’m doing? After everything you did to me? And now you think you have the obligation to ask me _how I’m doing?”_ Ahk took a deep breath and glared at Cecil, whose smile faltered slightly at the pharaoh’s icy stare. “I’m doing _absolutely_ fantastic.” He said in a monotone voice that made Reginald behind him shift uncomfortably. “You know, I’ve been wondering…” He glanced around the room and brought his gaze back to Cecil with a mock sigh.

 

         “Shouldn't you be retired?”

 

         Suddenly Cecil’s smirk came back and Ahkmenrah would be lying if he said he wasn’t worried. He has to play dumb. He had to constantly remind himself that this wasn’t _his_ museum. This wasn’t _his_ home. “I was hoping you wouldn't notice our age but who am I kidding? You see our new night guard, Larry Daley, recently quit. Such a shame too. I really thought he had potential."

 

         "Well I thought he looked like an eggplant!"

 

          Cecil just rolled his eyes at his fellow former night guard and smiled at Ahk again.

 

         "As I was saying; he quit. He totally disrupted the plan we had, you know, to ruin his life even further but I guess this works too." Cecil stood up then. Ahkmenrah gulped nervously. It took a lot of willpower for Ahk to keep his mouth shut around the three.

 

         "So we're making it up as we go along now." Said Cecil, taking a piece of white cloth out of his jacket pocket. "We can't have anybody stop us today, pharaoh. Retirement doesn't come cheap." Then Ahk's mouth was covered with the white clothed and tied around his head.

 

         "You'll never get away with it!" Ahk tried to say but all that came out was a dismal muffled sound. _What am I going to do now?_

 

"I'm sorry, your highness? I can't understand you." Said Cecil with an infuriating smirk on his face and all Ahk could do was glare at him. "Best be going now. We'll come back to put you in your sarcophagus later. We've got better things to do." So with a mock salute from Cecil and a smack to the back of his head from Gus, the three former night guards left the office and locked the door behind them.

 

          Ahk sat there in his chair, as he stared almost menacingly at the door of the office, and he began to go through his head for the time this exact thing happened. Larry lead the museum exhibits with Ahk by his side. Of course most of the time he sort of just reminded Larry that the evil night guards still had his tablet but he remained patient with him.

 

          He remembered the mad chase in the Manhattan snow, the frantic cleaning of the museum before 6 am struck, and of course the smiling face of Larry as he watched him dance and party the night after. Oh how he missed that smile. Tears started to gather in his eyes but he didn't let them fall. If he felt the salty droplets on his cheeks, he wouldn't be able to think straight anymore.

 

          Instead he straightened his back, the splitting image of his father on the throne of Egypt. Except, of course, with ropes binding him tightly. He closed his eyes and thought about Larry and how he saved the entire museum. He clenched his fists against the arms of the chair, planted his feet firmly on the floor, and took a deep breath.

 

          Suddenly all he could see was a white light behind his eyelids and he felt his body go numb again. Next thing he knew, the ropes that bound him were pooled around his feet and the chair he sat in was a pile of dust behind him. It happened again. It was just like when he pushed the sarcophagus lid open without anyone opening the locks. It was almost as if he attained some sort of super strength every time he thought of Larry.

 

           Larry.

 

           "I'll save this museum like you saved ours, Larry. I promise." Ahk said more to himself than to Larry. With that thought in mind, he kicked the ropes underneath his feet and hurriedly went to the office door. He turned the knob, only to find that it was locked. Ahk turned around, his back slumped against the door. He looked around the room and his eyes soon landed on the open drawer of the desk in the corner. Inside it was some odd glow. It looked almost like light reflecting off of gold.

 

           Ahk slowly walked towards the open drawer and found a ziplock filled with golden artifacts. He suspected that the evil night guards put them there. Then a thought came into his mind. "They were supposed to frame Larry!" He gasped with his hand against his mouth. Ahk was filled with anger at the three night guards and grabbed the bag of golden artifacts.

 

           "You did not get away in my museum. You won't get away here either." Ahk then rummaged through the drawers some more until he found a key ring in the bottom drawer. He smiled to himself, soon quickly unlocking the office door, and he found himself amidst the chaos in the museum lobby. "Oh Larry, I wish you did not quit."

 

            "Young man!"

 

            _Oh no._

 

            Ahk turned around to brace himself for the worst but all he saw was Teddy riding on Texas towards him. "I believe we never met, lad. What's your name?"

 

            "Oh my name is..."

 

            "Speak up boy! And don't eat your words!"

 

            "Ahkmenrah."

 

            Silence.

 

            "My name is Ahkmenrah." The former pharaoh puffed his chest out, the exact same way when he first met Larry. "Fourth king of the fourth King. Ruler of the land of my fathers."

 

            Teddy only looked at him with a blank expression for a few seconds before he broke out into a smile. “You’re not as scary as they say you are!” Teddy got off of Texas to give Ahkmenrah a big clap on the back. Ahk would be lying if he didn’t feel himself move forward slightly with the force. After a few seconds, Teddy scrunched his eyebrows in concern. “How in the world did you get out of your sarcophagus, boy?”

 

            “It’s a rather long story. I will tell you if you help me.” Ahk stood in front of him with bated breath before Teddy gave him what he hoped was his version of a friendly squeeze on the shoulder.

 

            “You don’t look like you want to harm anyone. Lead the way!”

 

            At that exact moment, Atilla and his huns ran down the halls, their heads thrown back as they screamed in their native language. Ahk gave Teddy a knowing smile when they passed.

 

            “Let’s start with them.”

* * *

         Ahk usually prided himself in his photographic memory.

 

         He could memorize long passages, in several languages, in less than a week. He could translate sentences in a foreign language into _another_ foreign language without effort. He could read an entire book series, provided generously by Nicky, in a day and quote them word for word the next day. It was one of the few attributes he liked about himself.

 

         Unfortunately, his memory was not helping him now.

 

         He was back in that - what did Larry call it? - _wild goose chase_ with Cecil again. Ahk knew he was using horses known as money carriers. He _knew_ there was only one word that could stop them but he swears to all the gods above and below that _he was drawing a blank._ “Give it up, Ahkmenrah! These horses won’t stop for anyone! Even for a 4000 year old undead pharaoh!” Ahk could really do well without Cecil’s teasing.

 

         Ahk held on to Rexy as he tried to remember that word Larry used. He felt the large dinosaur skeleton start to get tired of running and, though he could not see them, he knew that Jed and Octavius were getting antsy. He went through his memories, going as far back as he needed to, and he felt himself start to get lost again. He grew numb and he started floating in his sea of his thoughts. His hands were still subconsciously holding on to Rexy as he travelled through his memories.

 

         _“You should have done your research!”_

 

It was Cecil’s voice again. However, it sounded almost like he was speaking under water.

 

         _“These are money carriers! They’re trained not to stop for anything except for one word!”_

 

He’s almost there. _Just have to dig deeper…_

 

He then heard Larry’s voice. _“Oh yeah? You mean a word like…”_

 

Then it finally clicked in his mind. With a deep breath, a triumphant smirk directed at Cecil, he opened his mouth and yelled.

 

         “DAKOTA!”

* * *

         He did it. He actually did it.

 

         Ahkmenrah leaned against the trunk of a tree with his hands buried deep in his hoodie pockets. He didn’t feel like wearing his robes out in the New York snow again, especially since the adrenaline of the chase died down. Besides, the clothes Cecil put him in were _undeniably_ comfortable. Rebecca, whom he predicted would run back to the museum eventually, promised to get the museum back in order as best as she could. She had many questions but one look from the pharaoh got her to understand.

 

         “It’ll be exactly 1 more hour until dawn. Please hurry!" said Rebecca as she watched him walk in the direction of a particular apartment complex.

 

         “Worry about the rest of the museum. I have something to do first.” Then he was off.

 

         That all happened before he was standing outside of Larry Daley’s apartment building with a box by his feet and his tablet hidden carefully in a backpack he found in the night guard office. Larry lived on the second floor so Ahk had to tilt his head up slightly to see him from the window. It looked like he was moving boxes around his apartment and he was talking worriedly on the phone with an unknown person.

 

         With the hood over his head, Ahkmenrah tightened the straps of his backpack and carried the box up to the front door where he set it down. He ran his finger over all the buzzers until he found the messy scrawl of _Larry Daley._ He took one last glance at the window before he quickly pushed the buzzer. He ran as fast as he could back to his hiding place and waited patiently for Larry to come out the front door.

 

         Soon enough, the night guard - _his_ night guard - opened the door with an almost irritated look on his face. “Who would want me at this hour--” Larry almost tripped over the box in front of him, naturally not watching where he was going, and Ahk tried to hide his giggles behind two hands. _That’s his Larry._ “What the hell?” Larry knelt down next to the box and ripped the note taped on one of the flaps to read it.

 

**_I hope this is everything you need. -A_ **

 

         With furrowed eyebrows but a curious glint in his eye, Larry opened the box carefully and took out the first thing he saw.

 

         A flashlight.

 

         He reached back inside and took out another thing.

 

         A remote controlled car.

 

         Ahk watched him as Larry slowly emptied the contents of the box. After a few more minutes, a huge bone, a key ring, a bag of poop (care of Dexter), a pair of shoes, and several other things surrounded him before he got to the bottom. Larry reached in one more time and pulled out the most important item out of all of them:

 

         A night guard uniform.

 

         Ahk smiled slightly as Larry sat back with his legs crossed, cradling the uniform in his hands. “Didn’t think I’d see you again.” He said while he ran his hands across the course fabric. The former pharaoh continued to watch him fondly until Larry stuck his hand in one of the pockets. “What do we have here?” Larry asked himself and his eyes widened considerably as he took out not one but two fat wads of cash. Enough money to pay for his rent and groceries for the next two months.

 

         “How?” Larry looked around him, almost as if he could find the answer written on the apartment walls.

 

         Before Ahk could reveal himself, he felt the tablet in his backpack vibrate violently. “No no no… Not now!” He whispered harshly as he took the tablet out of his backpack. “You have the worst timing ever!” He practically scolded the tablet but, just like a bratty child, it didn’t listen to him and enfolded him in golden light. He frantically looked back at Larry, who was putting all of the things back into the box with a smile on his face and Ahk couldn’t help but smile himself.

 

         As one final attempt, Ahk yelled out Larry’s name to try and get him to look at him. But he wasn’t able to see if it worked for the tablet’s light almost blinded him again. He felt the unfortunately familiar sensation of being sucked into himself and the uneasy feeling of falling into something akin to a black hole.

 

         All Ahk could do was close his eyes and let himself be transported, what he hopes is, back home.


	3. The One Where He Doesn't Belong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Second Alternate Universe: Ahk saved Larry a job in his last trip. How will he save him this time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Told you it was going to be long. Anyway, this is the 3rd chapter! The fourth and fifth will be posted sometime next week :) I can't wait for y'all to read the rest!

         Ahkmenrah sat up immediately and opened his eyes. His view was a bit blurry from the sudden movement so he had to blink rapidly before he could see clearly. “Ugh…” He groaned as he rubbed his fingers to the sides of his head. It took him a few more minutes before he realized that he was sitting on a bed. He still wasn’t back home. Ahkmenrah rubbed his hand across his face before he was able to properly observe his surroundings.

 

         Fortunately though, he recognized the place right away.

 

         The long golden curtains hanging in front of a large decorated archway, the beautiful silk sheets draped over his legs, the large black cat curled up by his feet. On instinct, he reached his hand out to stroke the soft black fur of his pet panther. How could he forget his Anai? From what he clearly remembered in one of his readings, after his death, Anai ran away from the palace only to come back 3 years later to kill Kahmunrah. The books he read had many people believe that Anai did it in his name.

 

         As his fingers brushed over Anai’s ears, the beautiful black panther slowly lifted her head up to look at her master. She let out a purr before standing up and curling up in Ahkmenrah’s lap. With Ahk’s hand still slowly stroking her head, he knew that he was back in his childhood room. Everything looked exactly as he remembered it. He never liked using the master bedroom when he became pharaoh. It was much too big and the shadows the pillars would cast on the walls were ominous and unpleasant.

 

         He couldn’t physically show his dissatisfaction at not being back at the museum with a large black cat in his lap so he opted to purse his lips in annoyance instead. This was not what he wanted to happen. Nothing seemed to be going the way he wanted to lately and it honestly frustrated him. First Larry, then being transported practically to another universe and now transported back in time? He hoped this was just back in time.

 

         “Ahkmenrah!”

 

         Oh no. He knew that voice. Of course he knew that voice. It’s the voice that echoed in his head and haunted his dreams every night after the incident.

 

         “Ahkmen! Come on out, I must show you something!”

 

         _No no no… Please just go away. Leave me alone. Please don’t hurt me._ These were the thoughts that resonated through his mind as the faint sound of footsteps started getting louder. “Please… don’t…” Ahkmenrah couldn’t stop the tears from falling and he hugged Anai closer to his chest. The large cat seemed to notice her master’s distress and tried to lick the tears from his cheeks. Try as she might, she couldn’t stop the feeling of dread that coursed through Ahk’s body.

 

         “Ahkmen? Brother, why are you crying?”

 

         Ahkmenrah slowly opened his eyes and lifted his head from its position on Anai’s to look at the person in front of him. Kahmunrah. He couldn’t help the pure fear in his eyes as he looked at his brother. Who could blame him for such a reaction?

 

         Anyone would react this way if they saw their own _murderer for the second time._

 

“Oh dear brother please stop crying… Are you not feeling well? Do you need me to get mother?”

 

         The sincerity in Kahmunrah’s voice confused him. Why was he being so sincere? Kah was not a sincere person. Kah was vindictive, untrustworthy and absolutely menacing. He was not the kind to kneel down next to his baby brother and comfort him. Kah was not a _good_ big brother in any sense of the word. So why was he so concerned? Why was his hand reaching out to him? At the sight of his brother’s hand coming closer, Ahkmenrah scooted back. _Old habits truly die hard._

 

         “Did I do anything to cause you such distress? Tell me Ahkmen, you always do.”

 

         _When have I ever told you anything?_

 

“Don't…”

 

         “Don’t what, Ahkmen? Please tell me.”

 

         “Don’t hurt m-me.” That statement almost came out as a soft whimper.

 

         The shock on Kahmunrah's face was the second thing that confused him today. “H-hurt you?” His older brother shook his head, almost as if he couldn’t comprehend such a thing. Something he never did before. “Why would I hurt you?” _Because you hate me. Because you can’t stand me taking the throne. Because you think mother and father don’t love you. Because you are absolutely evil at heart. Because--_

 

“I-I don’t know.” This time his voice was thick and he scooted a little bit more further away from his brother, still not trusting him completely. Anai rubbed the top of her head underneath Ahkmenrah’s chin affectionately which made him look at her. Her deep green eyes almost looked like she was trying to convey a message to him. He just can’t quite a put a finger on what she wanted to say to him.

 

         “Ahkmen, look at me.” Ahkmenrah did as his brother said, albeit a bit shakily. “Listen to me when I say I will never hurt you. Not in a million years. Not in the afterlife. _Not ever_.” Kah almost reached his hand out again but quickly pulled it back, still a bit unsure if his baby brother would accept his comforting touch. “What kind of pharaoh would I be if I hurt my own flesh and blood?” Ahk blinked at Kah’s words and he had to process it in his mind a few times before it registered properly.

 

         “ _What kind of pharaoh would I be?”_

 

He didn’t just travel back in time. He was transported, once again, to another universe. In this universe, Ahkmenrah was not pharaoh. Kah was. To say that it made him slightly uneasy was true. His parents gave him the throne for a reason. In this universe, however, Kahmunrah seemed to prove himself worthy of the throne. This perplexed Ahk immensely and he was still not relaxed around him. He would be a fool not to remember.

 

         He remembered the nights where Larry made him go to sleep, since he was the only real human exhibit, and he would have nightmares 10 minutes later. He remembered crying into Larry’s shoulder when he would wake up screaming. He remembered Larry’s sweet yet slightly out of tune voice singing him one of the new songs on the radio he liked so much. He remembered the physical, mental and emotional scar Kahmunrah left on him even after death.

 

         _Larry._

 

He wasn't surprised that the night guard drifted into his mind again. He couldn’t help it if Larry Daley was a symbol of hope and safety to him. In the midst of anything terrible, Larry would always be there. New tears gathered in Ahkmenrah’s eyes when he realized that Larry couldn’t be in this universe. This was ancient Egypt. It’s _impossible_ for some form of Larry to be here. He could understand the last one but this? Never.

 

         “I don’t know how to make things better here, Ahkmen, but I assure you that I have never had the intention of hurting you. Please know that.” Sincerity wasn’t a very good look on Kah and bile went up his throat. _This could all be a trap._ Kahmunrah stood up slowly, still with a worried expression on his face. _He’s being nice now but what about later? Will he still be nice then?_ “I’ll be in the master bedroom if you need me.” With a furrow of his eyebrows, Kah left without another word.

 

         When Ahk was sure Kah wasn’t anywhere near him anymore, he let out a sharp breath and a few more tears. He’s gone. He won’t hurt him now.

 

         _“I never had the intention of hurting you.”_

 

Ahkmenrah scoffed at that as he roughly wiped his tears away with the back of his hand. “Not from what I know. Not from what I _feel_.” Ahk slowly stood up, startling Anai in his lap but she seemed used to it and just leapt back on the bed with a lazy purr. “I don’t see how people perceive you as menacing, Anai,” Ahk said with a shake of his head. The large cat just lifted her head up to look at him with narrowed golden eyes before going back to sleep. Ahk scoffed at that.

 

         “Sweet dreams, your highness.”

* * *

 

         It took Ahkmenrah a lot of time before he could get out of his room. It was especially hard since the usual clothes he wore weren’t the ones his personal servants dressed him in. The bright side is he doesn’t have to wear his long cape anymore. He always tripped over it anyway. He had on his large necklace and his linen skirt as usual. His leather sandals he never left home without were placed on his feet just like always. The only difference was the lack of a crown and cape.

 

         And Ahk strangely found himself almost feeling relieved without the weight.

 

         When his personal servants left him to his own devices, the young Egyptian prince twirled his khol eyeliner stick around his fingers. It had been a long time since he’d put make-up on. Almost 4000 years in fact. Whenever the tablet would wake him up at night, his skin was always perfectly moisturized and whatever make-up his parents insisted on putting on him before he was buried was still applied perfectly.

 

         So yeah, maybe his hand _was_ shaking. Big deal. He's done this before. Sort of.

 

         “Having trouble there, son?”

 

         Ahk turned around, which resulted in a large black streak across his cheek at the intrusion. “Sweet mother of Ra!” he screamed before seeing his mother standing by the pillars with a hand covering her mouth as she laughed. Ahk’s eyes lit up at the sight of his mother, whom he has not seen in centuries, and ran towards her. “Mother!” The queen opened her arms wide and Ahk quickly fell into them. He missed this. He missed her.

 

         “My sweet child, you are always so affectionate,” Shepseheret whispered as she stroked Ahkmenrah’s curly brown hair. Ahk buried his head into his mother’s shoulder and inhaled her comforting scent. When the young prince didn’t want to let go, Shepseheret chuckled softly. “Oh dear it’s only been one night! Did you miss me already?”

 

         “Yes!” Ahk answered without skipping a beat. “I-It’s only been a few hours…”- _4000 years-_ “but I missed you deeply, mother.” _I’ve missed you every day of my life._

 

“Well, I am here now.” _Thank all the gods above that you are._

 

After a few minutes, Ahk let go and smiled at his mother. She smiled back and tilted her head to the side. “Let me fix that for you.” Before he could protest, Shepseheret licked her finger and rubbed the streak of kohl on her son’s cheek. Normally he would be far too embarrassed to let her do that but after craving for a maternal touch for years, he let her. Just as she was wiping off the last remains of the kohl, Kahmunrah walked in deep in conversation with his father.

 

         Ahk visibly freezed up and his stance did not go unnoticed by Shepseheret. “Ahkmen, what’s wrong?”

 

         “Ahkmen! Mother! I have news!” Kah threw his arms around his brother and mother with enthusiasm which gave Ahkmenrah a difficult time to keep himself from shaking. “I think it will be best if we all sit down. I would like to get your opinion before I carry out the order.” Before Ahk could ask what order, Kah’s hand curled up around his shoulder and led him carefully back to his stool.

 

         “Did something happen, Kah?” asked his mother as she leaned against the table with her husband standing by them with a hand on Ahkmenrah’s shoulder. If Ahkmenrah didn’t know any better, he would have thought they were about to take a family photo. _You’re not in the 21st Century. Selfie sticks don’t exist yet._

 

         “Do you remember the slave with the peculiar name?”

 

         “The one who calls himself Larry? An odd name for an Israelite, don’t you think?” said his father next to him and Ahk’s reaction was quick.

 

         “Did you just say Larry?”

 

         His parents and his brother looked at him weirdly and Ahk slouched a little bit to make him look less enthusiastic. “Y-Yes… Larry. Very odd name for one such as him.” He refused to use the word slave. He was the only person in his family who would rather call slaves his _servants_ or even his _friends_. This particular trait of his didn’t seem to click in this universe though and Ahk quickly shook his head and allowed Kah to continue. Although the thought still made him uneasy.

 

         “As… I was saying. You all know that Larry. Well, I have been monitoring him for any suspicious activity.” Ahk held his breath for the next statement Kah would make next. “Unfortunately he’s a relatively good slave. Admirable even. So I let the matter drop for a few months.” Ahk visibly relaxed at that but he instantaneously coughed and nodded as if he was intrigued. “But today he was less than competent and he pulled the last straw this morning.”

 

         _Please don’t tell me what I think you are about to tell me…_

 

“He deliberately disobeyed my orders on simple matters and what makes this situation absolutely worse is that he did it with such an… attitude! I could not condone what he did. No one must disrespect the pharaoh.” Ahk looked up at his parents who looked like they were agreeing with everything he was saying. _Oh no._

 

         “So what did you do?” Considering what happened this morning, Kahmunrah seemed surprised that Ahk talked to him even though it was like a whisper.

 

         “Naturally I had him thrown into prison until further instructions.”

 

         “A-Are you going to… _kill_ him?” asked Ahk a little bit louder this time as his voice trembled slightly.

 

         “Heavens, no! He will have a trial and if he could prove his loyalty to the royal family, and to his pharaoh and god, then he will be set free.” Ahk almost relaxed at that. Almost.

 

         “And his son?” Kah looked confused at that and Ahk had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

 

         “Does he not have a son? I remember he has one. Will he be given proper care while his father is in prison?” Kah tapped his chin to ponder on what his little brother just proposed and looked to his parents.

 

         “I may be pharaoh but I still value my family’s suggestions on these matters. Mother? Father? What do you think?” Ahk looked up at his mother with pleading eyes and placed a hand on his father’s own that was placed on his shoulder. _Please…_

         “I think it just right for Larry’s son be provided with care until his father’s trial ends,” said his father which relieved Ahk greatly.

 

         “Where do you propose he would stay? If I remember correctly…”

 

         “His mother died of some unknown disease shortly after his birth. He cannot stay home alone.” Ahk was taken aback at how informed Kah was about his people’s problems. From what he heard from his mother after his death, all Kahmunrah did was kill anyone who even looked at him without bowing first. “He could stay at a close relative’s house but we have not updated the slave records in a while…”

 

         “He could stay here!” Ahk intervened quickly before anyone could come up with a better idea. If he couldn’t get to Larry right away, he could get Nicky. He could keep Nicky safe. At least he hopes his name is still Nicky in this universe, considering that Larry was still his father’s name even in _ancient Egypt._ “There is no safer place than the palace. He would be close to his father and if Larry would be guilty of any further charges, we can raise his child to be a servant or a soldier.”

 

         All three of his family members seemed pleased at the idea and Kahmunrah smiled at him. Ahk was not used to seeing Kah smile at him. Actually, he never even saw him smile _happily_. The only smile he saw on Kah’s face was the sinister one he made before he killed him…

 

         “If I were not the eldest, you would have made a fine pharaoh little brother!”

 

         _Oh you have no idea._

* * *

         “Sweet dreams, Nicky.”

 

         Ahkmenrah tucked the young child in properly before he slowly moved away from the bed. They acquired Nicky into the palace only an hour after Kahmunrah told them of Larry’s imprisonment. The small boy immediately latched on to Ahkmenrah after they had a quick meal to welcome him. It seemed that in this universe, Nicky remained to have a certain fondness for the Egyptian prince.

 

         When Ahk was sure that Nicky was fast asleep and, from his experiences in his own universe, would not wake up any time soon, he quietly grabbed the cloak he borrowed from one of his servants off the bed post. He quickly put it around his shoulders and walked to the archway as he held it close to his chest. With one last look at the snoring child, Ahk left his room with a sweep of his cloak, his bare feet making little to no noise on the stone.

 

         Fortunately for him, Ahk still had a good reputation amongst the lower class so they allowed him to escape the palace. Some even offered to be look-outs and give the proper information to the prison guards. “Kindness could transcend even the limits of the universe.” They said to him when he asked them for help. If only he could tell them how right they were. But all he did was smile and thank them profusely.

 

         With the guards’ help, he was able to get to the prison without being spotted by unwanted eyes and was assisted by the prison guards. Larry’s part of the prison was closer to the exit because he was a recent criminal so it did not take long for Ahk to be standing outside his prison door. “You have only a few hours until dawn, your grace. We will be right outside the door when you are ready to go back to the palace.” Said one of the guards and he thanked him before opening Larry’s cell.

 

         “Larry?”

 

         One of the guards outside offered him a torch which helped him see the room better. With the additional lighting, Ahk found Larry sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. Ahk quickly went to him and knelt in front of the former palace slave. Larry looked up slowly at the prince and his eyes widened. “P-Please don’t tell me I’m--” But Ahkmenrah stopped him before he could continue.

 

         “Shhh… It is alright. Your trial will start soon. And I know you are not a wicked man.”

 

         “H-How could you say that? You don’t even know me.”

 

         _I know you so well in another life and I wish I could tell you._

 

“Your son.” Larry looked at him, perplexed at the words that came out of his mouth.

 

         “My son? What about my son? Is he alright?”

 

         “Your son is living in the palace with me until your trial is done.” Larry let out a sob of relief at knowing his son is in safe hands. As a former palace slave, he also knew of prince Ahkmenrah’s kindness. Now he could see that he was kind to a fault.

 

         “Why are you here? I am but a lowly servant. I shouldn’t be graced with your presence unless it was cleaning your room.” The way Larry talked in this universe was so different yet still so like the Larry he knew of that Ahk tried not to smile. Instead tears gathered in his eyes and he stood up to place the torch on one of the metal bands on the walls. He wiped his face once before kneeling down in front of Larry again. This Larry was much younger though. He looked like the age he was when he first freed Ahk from his sarcophagus back home, maybe even younger. 

 

         “I am here to make sure of your innocence and to give regular news to your son on how you’re doing. He was very distraught when we brought him to the palace. The boy wouldn’t stop crying until I comforted him myself--” Suddenly Larry launched himself at Ahkmenrah and hugged him tightly. Ahk wasn’t fazed in the slightest and immediately hugged Larry back. He buried his face into his neck, just like he did with his mother, and let Larry cry into his shoulder as the man whispered his thanks repeatedly.

* * *

         For the next three days before Larry’s trial, Ahkmenrah visited him in his cell. He gathered up as much information about him as possible like why he disobeyed Kah and what was happening on that day that caused his performance to be poor. Ahk read enough books back home to remember all the stuff 21st century lawyers would ask the “accused” to make sure their information coincides with the events.

 

         If this was _not_ his last universe and he will _not_ be transported back home, Ahk hoped he would be a lawyer next.

 

         “Nothing bad happened the day you disobeyed the pharaoh?”

 

         “It was a normal day. Like always.”

 

         “Was there a particular reason as to why you did what you did?”

 

         That question was always met with silence. Ahk was careful to leave that question last because it could either go one of two ways: Larry would tell him and the questioning session would go on or Larry would keep his mouth shut and Ahk wouldn’t push him anymore. Every time he asked that question, the latter would happen. Instead of getting frustrated at him, like the law books he read would say, he sat next to him and talked about Nicky. The mention of his son would get him smiling again.

 

         “Nicky played with Anai again today.”

 

         Larry turned his head to look at the prince, giving him his undivided attention.

 

         “They chased each other throughout the halls of the palace. I think they even scared father once. Anai’s paws were soaked with red wine when father found her and caused a panic. He thought she killed him! I laughed when he told me.”

 

         “What did you tell him?”

 

         Ahk smiled at Larry’s involvement and continued the story. “Anai is as vicious as a fruit fly when it comes to children. Nicky absolutely adores Anai. Anai would protect him from anything as she does for me.” Ahk then looked Larry straight in the eye before he said the next thing. “She always keeps him safe.” Larry smiled at him and he scooted closer to the prince. When Ahk tilted his head with a questioning look in his eye, Larry yawned.

 

         “Sorry… We must have lost track of time.”

 

         “Don’t we always?”

 

         “M-May I?” Larry stuttered out as he gestured with his head to Ahk’s shoulder.

 

         “Of course.”

 

         Ahkmenrah could have watched him sleep for hours. Instead, when he was sure he was out like a candle in the wind, he carefully placed his head on one of the linen cloths he brought for him two days before. He left swiftly before Larry could figure out he was already gone.

* * *

 

         Four days later, Larry answered the question.

 

         “Yes.”

 

         Ahk had to stop himself from jumping for joy at the word. Yes. He had a reason. “This is good, Larry. This could help free you.” Ahk shifted his position so that he is sat crossed-legged across from Larry. “What was your reason, Larry? Take your time.” The former slave started nervously wringing his hands.

 

         “Pharaoh…”

 

         “Yes?”

 

         “He threatened to take my son away from me.”

 

         Ahk was too stunned to respond. Larry took that as a sign to continue.

 

         “I didn’t fold his linen properly and he was m-more vicious. He was never like that to me before. I thought he was such a nice and honorable man…” Larry shook his head when tears started to fall down his cheeks. Without thinking, Ahk immediately reached his hand out to wipe the tears with his thumb. After a few minutes of Ahkmenrah comforting him, Larry took a deep breath in and looked him straight in the eye. It was Ahk’s turn to hold his breath until Larry opened his mouth.

 

         “He thought I wanted to take advantage of you.”

 

         “W-What?”

 

         Larry didn’t speak for a solid minute before he let out a tiny sob. “I would always… look at you. He noticed. Maybe it was your k-kindness or your physical appearance but something d-drew me to you. He was scared that I-I, an older m-man, would take you away. And I would never do that!” At that statement, Larry grabbed the sides of Ahk’s face and the prince was still too busy processing his words to move away.

 

         “I would never take you away from your family! I would never take advantage of you in any way! Please know that, your grace. P-Please… I don't want Nicky taken away...” At the sight of Larry almost breaking down, Ahk hugged him. The man sobbed violently and refused to hug back. His hands laid loose on Ahkmenrah’s shoulders and they were visibly shaking. “I couldn’t h-help m-my--” But Ahk just shushed him and held his head against his chest. Just like his own Larry did after he woke up from a nightmare.

 

         “I believe you,” he said once Larry calmed down some.

 

         Larry sniffed once before shaking his head. “I-I’m sorry.”

 

         “You don’t have to be sorry. I understand completely.”

 

         Before Larry could respond to that, Ahk gently caressed Larry’s cheek with one hand and leaned in slowly. This allowed Larry to pull away at any time. But he didn’t pull away. He stayed rooted to his spot, his heart pounding so loudly in his ears that he was afraid he was going to go deaf.

 

         Then Ahkmenrah’s lips met his and suddenly nothing mattered anymore. The only thing that mattered was the pure bliss he got from the young prince’s touch.

 

         The bliss was short-lived, however, when the pharaoh opened the door.

 

         “Ahkmen!”

 

         Ahk pulled away quickly at the sound of his brother’s voice and Larry did not miss the pure, unadulterated fear in his eyes. But it was only for a split second that he saw it for the prison guards quickly split him and Ahkmenrah apart. The pharaoh was looking at him like he was a scum of the earth and kicked him hard in the stomach. He faintly heard Ahk scream “NO!” but another kick aimed at his stomach forced him to look at the floor.

 

         “This is exactly what I feared. You are filling my brother’s mind with foolish things!”

 

         “Kah, please!”

 

         “Be quiet brother or you will force my hand!” Ahk, out of dread of what would happen, stayed quiet and bit his lip to stop from crying out. _This is my fault._

 

He swore he saw a shadow of sadness sweep over Kah’s face but it was gone as soon as he saw it. Kah turned back to Larry and slapped him hard. Ahk wanted to look away but found that he couldn’t. “I put you in prison hoping to give you a second chance. If you won your trial, I would have told you to stay farthest away from my brother. I saw the way you looked at him. Your eyes were hungry with lust.”

 

         “I will have none of it any longer. Take this slave out to the execution area! Bring my sharpest khopesh and we will behead him at dawn.” The prison guards hesitated for a second as they saw the younger of the two brothers looking distressed at his words. But Kah ignored his pleas. “What are you waiting for? _GO!_ ” The guards reluctantly forced Larry to walk, no matter how weak he was from the kicks, and looked at Ahkmenrah sympathetically before heading out the door.

 

         The silence rang loudly in Ahk’s ears and he just wanted it all to stop. They were so close. Larry would have been freed. It was all his fault… _It’s all my fault. It’s all my fault._

 

“I did not want to do this, brother.” Kah looked over his shoulder at his helpless baby brother practically being held up by the prison guards. The dim lighting allowed him to see the pain and panic evident on his face. Kah briefly considered comforting him but then he remembered the morning a few days ago. Ahkmenrah didn’t let him touch him when he went into his room. When he told them about Larry, he froze up noticeably when he threw his arm around him.

 

         He felt he would make the situation worse if he were to be the big brother. The only thing he could do now was be a pharaoh. And if he can’t be a benevolent pharaoh then so be it. Let all of Egypt know that no one shall cross him. Let even little Ahkmenrah know - the little boy who brought a dead snake home to impress him - that if anything were to stand in his way, he would stab it with a knife.

 

         “Lock him up in here until the execution is over.”

 

         Ahk’s head snapped up and his big, gray eyes pleaded with him but Kah only looked away. “P-Please, Kah! Don’t do this to him! He has a f-family!”

 

         “And so do I.” Ahkmenrah’s whimpers and murmurs were but a mere whisper to Kahmunrah as he left the cell. He ordered the guards to leave him in the cell and lock him up.

 

         It was hard though for the Pharaoh of Egypt to turn a deaf ear to his baby brother’s wretched cries. But he had to. He has a slave to behead.

* * *

 

         20 minutes until the sun rises and Ahkmenrah has stopped crying.

 

         Where would his tears get him? What good would it do to let out his grief-stricken sobs in an empty room? Nowhere and nothing. He was hopeless. He failed Larry here as he did back in his own universe. Thinking about home couldn’t even bring new tears to his eyes. He couldn’t do anything. Only a miracle would save him now.

 

         Suddenly there was a loud crashing noise outside.

 

         Maybe miracles did exist after all.

 

         After a few seconds of hearing some muffled arguing, Ahkmenrah decided to move towards the door. The closer he got, the clearer the voices were. Before he knew it, the head of a battle axe was staring him in the face. If he got any closer to the door then he was a dead man. Ahk figured that was his cue to back away from the door and let whoever was breaking it continue before he accidentally decapitates him.

 

         A tiny, high pitched voice then screamed from outside “For daddy!”

 

         Suddenly Ahkmenrah knows who is wielding the axe. And it’s not some muscular savior from a distant realm.

 

         The door broke down only minutes later and Ahk ran to its remains before looking up at the doorway. There stood little Nicky with a battle axe balanced in his tiny hands. The prison guards were cowering by the stone wall, their spears clutched tightly in their hands as they stared at the child with the weapon. “I think you should give me that, Nicky.” The boy didn’t protest and happily gave the axe to the prince with a proud smile on his face.

 

         “I saved you!”

 

         Ahk couldn’t help but smile back. “Yes you did Nicky. I am forever in your debt.” Ahkmenrah got down on one knee in front of the boy and ruffled his hair affectionately. “My hero.” Nicky’s delighted laughter rang in his ears and the young lad basically clung himself to his leg. Ahk held a hand out for the guards still shaking by the wall, which resulted in a mini-fight on who gets to hold the prince’s hand first.

 

         “How much more time until dawn?” He asked once the guards were standing up in front of him.

 

         “10 minutes, your grace.”

 

         “Then I must hurry.”

 

         “But the pharaoh told us to keep you here…”

 

         “Would you like Nicky to wield the axe again?” He brandished the aforementioned weapon with a questioning look and a single glance at the grinning child got them to shake their heads no. “Good. Hold this for me then.” He held out the axe until one of the guards took it which didn’t take so long because Nicky was still looking at it with a glint in his eye.

 

         “Can I count on you all to never say anything on… who broke me out?”

 

         “Yes?”

 

         “Alright then! Thank you very much!”

 

         Before the guards could say anything else, Ahkmenrah picked Nicky up and ran through the prison halls as fast as he could. Everything felt like a blur as he ran. He didn’t register the stone and sand underneath his feet or the tightness of Nicky’s hands on his shoulder to keep him from falling. All he was focusing on was getting to Larry. When he got out of the prison, he looked around before he saw moving figures in the near distance.

 

         Ahk headed for that direction, running, running, _running_ until his lungs felt like they were burning from exhaustion. “We’re almost there, Nicky.” He said to the child clinging on to him. “We’re almost to your father.” Nicky could only nod and he buried his head into the older one’s shoulder. He had to hurry. Time was almost up.

 

         Time then seemed to stop when he saw Kah raise his sword up to behead a defeated Larry.

 

         “No…” Ahkmenrah frantically looked around before he handed Nicky over to the nearest servant he recognized and pushed himself through the crowd. He didn’t even notice there was a crowd. All that mattered is he had to get to Larry. He had to get to him before it was too late. “No!” He shouted which made the crowd disperse a little bit more. But Kahmunrah still did not hear him. “Kah!” He screamed, his voice cracking in the process.

 

         Before he knew it, his hand was grasping his older brother’s wrist before he could deliver the fatal blow. “Kahmunrah, stop!” He said and the crowd gasped in unison. He saw a faint trace of surprise but mostly anger as the pharaoh tried to wrench his wrist away from Ahk. Yet Ahkmenrah had a strong grip. “I won’t let you kill him.”

 

         “Step aside, Ahkmen.”

 

         “No.”

 

         “Ahkmen, _please_ …”

 

         “I said no!”

 

         That’s when the younger brother let go of his wrist and got down on his knees in front of Larry. “Ahkmenrah, please don’t do this…” Larry pleaded but Ahkmenrah only ran his hand through his hair and the wrongly accused convict could only close his eyes in submission.

 

         “I’m not letting you go this time.”

 

         Ahk turned back to Kah, his chest puffed out and his hands holding Larry’s. “If you are going to kill him, kill me first.”

 

         “Ahkmen don’t be ridiculous--”

 

         The sheer determination in his little brother’s eyes stopped him from saying anything. He couldn’t kill his baby brother. It hurt him enough to lock him up in the prison. How much more damage will killing Ahkmenrah cause to him and his family? “Don’t make me do this.”

 

         “I want you to.”

 

         “Why?” He needed to know. His brother was acting so foolish, so out of his mind.

 

         “Because in another life, in another universe,” Ahkmenrah looked at Larry then and saw the man’s awestruck eyes staring at him so intensely his head hurt. “In another universe, I could love a man such as Larry. And in this universe, I have chosen to love him still.” He didn’t turn to Kahmunrah anymore even if the last thing he will say is directed at him.

 

         “Maybe if you kill me, you will understand the shortcomings of my heart and how it loves to a fault.”

 

         A long stretch of silence followed his words but Ahkmenrah didn’t care anymore. He was crying again but he was smiling. He was smiling at Larry and how he finally could hold him even for just a fleeting moment. Even if this was not his night guard back home, this was still Larry. No matter where he goes, there will always be Larry.

 

         “I cannot reason with my brother when it comes to his heart.”

 

         Ahkmenrah finally looked at his older brother and he could tell that he was holding back tears. “Are you sure this is what you want?” For the first time, and last time, Ahkmenrah smiled at Kahmunrah and nodded once in confirmation. Kah nodded back with a reluctant smile and raised his arm up another time. Ahk turned back to the man in front of him and laid his own forehead on Larry’s. He gave him one last glance before giving him a bittersweet smile.

 

         No one noticed the golden light surrounding the couple. No one else but Ahkmenrah.

 

         Just as Kahmunrah brought his khopesh down on the two, the world went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feedback is very much appreciated!


	4. The One With The Noisy Roommates (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Third Alternate Universe: Ahkmenrah finds himself in another predicament that is much more complex than what it may seem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is technically chapter 4.1. I realized that if I only made it one chapter, it would be so long that it would kind of be a sore to read. So it's split into 2. More chapters, much happiness right? Please tell me I'm right.
> 
> I'll make a deal. If you guys ask for it, the next chapter will be posted tomorrow. 
> 
> Why?
> 
> Because I'm thirsty and I have no friends.

Ahkmenrah woke up to the sound of a very annoying alarm clock.

 

         On instinct, he reached out to where that awful noise was coming from. “Where is it?” he grumbled impatiently and it took him a few seconds before his hand came in contact with the alarm clock.

 

         His hand also came in contact with a cold substance. And rubber.

 

         Ahk’s eyes flew wide open at that and he sat up immediately to see what he had in his hand. To his horror, an empty bottle of lube lay in his palm alongside a _used_ condom. No. Not _a_ used condom. _Several_ used condoms. It was there and then that Ahk let out an ear piercing scream and threw the filthy objects as far away from him as possible. “Why the fuck?!” he screeched and his use of that language stopped him momentarily.

 

         Before he could comprehend what he just said, a few groans emerged from his left side and Ahk was honestly too scared to turn his head. Instead he decided to look anywhere but to the left. He found that he was sitting on a bed again but not like the one he had back in Egypt. It was a rather lumpy bed with a thick comforter. The comforter, to Ahk’s surprise and delight, had Egyptian hieroglyphs on it for decoration.

 

         He stood up, deliberately keeping his head from turning towards wherever the groans came from, and tried to read what the hieroglyphs say. After a few minutes of deciphering the symbols, Ahk furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “H-How great are thy--”

 

         “Buttocks!”

 

         Ahk was startled by the booming voice behind him, which caused him to trip over the shoes laid in a neat line by his bed. Well, it wasn’t a straight line anymore. The young man shook his head and rubbed his hands on his aching butt before he looked up at the source of the voice that scared him. “You alright there, kemosabe?” Oh my god. _Please don’t tell me this is real._ Unfortunately it was real.

 

         There sat a younger looking Jedediah with nothing but his underwear on. Behind him lay, a hopefully decently clothed, Octavius. It took Ahk a few seconds to register the fact that Jed and Oct here were _normal sized._ As a normal sized human, Jed looked easily taller than him even though he was just sitting down. A few inches above him at most. “Sorry to scare you, Ahky poo. We woke up to the sound of your scream… again.”

 

         “It would help if we didn’t put our alarm clock and condoms on his bedside table, Jedediah.” came Octavius’ rough voice from the bed.

 

         “But it’s a classic prank! Ahk’s reaction here _never_ gets old!”

 

         “Yes but if his ungodly scream is our actual alarm every day, then we’re going to have to stop having sex so frequently.” Octavius sat up at that and Ahk had to avert his eyes from looking… down there.

 

         “You don’t mean that, sweet cheeks,” Jedediah cooed, running his finger down Octavius’ abdomen and Ahkmenrah tried not to hurl.

 

         “I think I’m going to be sick.” whispered Ahk and he shakily stood up from the floor to sit back on his bed. “I’d appreciate it if you had sex somewhere else.” If Ahkmenrah was going to be honest, he always knew there was sexual tension between the two the first time they met. It was a matter of time on when they were actually going to act on it. Fortunately in this universe, they have been acting on it for a while. Or rather, unfortunately.

 

         “We’re roommates, you Egyptian prick. What do you want us to do? Get it on in Teddy’s room? Fornicate in one of the lecture halls? You’re stuck with us ‘till graduation.” Jed tipped an imaginary cowboy hat at that statement and Ahk tried not to laugh at the irony.

 

         “We suggest you get earplugs if it’s bothering you so much,”  said Octavius, who at least had the decency to look slightly ashamed. The bulge of the sheets draped on him said otherwise. Ahk, however, didn’t catch that last asservation because his ears immediately locked on the word _graduation._ What did Jed mean by that? He slowly looked around the room he was in, spotting posters, a calendar and a cork board filled with pictures and a huge emblem in the middle.

 

         Ahk steadily walked towards the corkboard to take a better look at the large symbol. Upon closer inspection, he found that it looked like a torch. Right next to it was a picture of a bobcat with a purple collar around its neck. The letters _NYU_ were printed above both of them. Ahk knew what those letters meant. They certainly did not spell a single word. “New York University,” he whispered as he ran a single finger over the 3 letters. He placed his entire hand on top of the picture of the bobcat and tried to process what was happening.

 

         One, he was back in New York.

 

         Two, he was in a university dormitory.

 

         Three, his roommates were a pair of bunnies.

 

         Four, he still wasn’t back home.

 

         Ahk figured that he was getting closer. At least he wasn’t back in Ancient Egypt. He wondered what the hell the tablet was doing to him but he couldn’t dwell on it any longer. Jedediah was suddenly right next to him and it took a lot of willpower for Ahk not to smack him. “You alright? You’ve been out of it since you woke up. I’m not talking about the grumpy, non-morning person kind of out of it. More like the ‘where the fuck am I?’ kind of out of it. Does that make any sense?”

 

         “You’re acting weird, bro,” Octavius said from his other side. At least he wrapped a towel around his waist this time. “At least you’ve got a few more hours until you can shake it off. Your next class doesn’t start until 2pm, you lucky bastard!” Octavius ruffled his hair at that and Ahk faked a smile. He’s going to have to find his schedule, then.

 

         “Yeah… Fuck morning classes, man.”Jedediah added, who was suddenly on the side Octavius was in, and he wound his arms around his boyfriend.

 

         “Not more than you fuck me though, right babe?” Octavius whispered seductively which was frankly the last straw for Ahkmenrah.

 

         “Oh my god just get out! _Both_ of you!”

 

         The couple simultaneously wiggled their eyebrows at him before walking out of the room, hand in hand. Once the two left the room, Ahk took the advantage and explored his room some more. He was only _displayed_ at a university. He was never a university _student._ Ahk would be lying if he said he wasn’t excited for the opportunity to actually do what one was supposed to do in university. Sneaking into the library at night was the only experience he had before being locked up again.

 

         He intended to make the most out of the time he’s given here.

 

         Of course there _was_ the matter of the tablet. Whatever it was doing to him should be investigated immediately. First order of business was to find it. He’s sure it’s just around the room. He was too preoccupied in the last universe to find it, which he probably should have. Ahk kicked himself for missing the opportunity to talk to his father about it but it’s done now. He’s in this place now and there is nothing he could do about it. Except maybe find out _why the hell it’s transporting him through alternate universes._

 

So Ahkmenrah spent the last half hour finding the tablet. He checked under the bed, in the closet and - Khonsu help him - under Jed and Oct’s bed. Nothing. Ahk leaned against the study table near the wall and tried to think. If he were a 4000 year old magical, golden tablet where would he be? He scanned the room from his position and his eyes landed on a lonely backpack sitting in the corner. How could he have missed that?

 

         He quickly walked over to it and, sure enough, his tablet was inside. He took it out, sitting on the floor to examine it closely. “If only you could tell me what you’re doing,” he murmured, more to himself than at the slab of gold in his lap. Suddenly there was the unmistakable sound of giggling outside the room and he quickly hid the tablet inside the backpack. Just as he zipped the bag shut, Octavius and Jedediah entered the room practically sucking each other’s faces off.

 

         When they started making rather obscene noises, Ahk took that as a sign to leave. So he grabbed whatever clothes were in reach inside the open closet, threw his backpack over his shoulder, and ran out before things could go any further. He’d rather not be mentally scarred twice today.

* * *

         It was 1:20 pm and Ahk had to go to class.

 

         Thankfully, Octavius and him shared this one class (“The only reason I’m taking it is because I’m lacking units.”) so he was relieved to know that he wouldn’t be walking to his first class alone. Judging by the fact that it took him a while to find his class schedule, he has been in this university for quite some time. Enough time to “memorize” the map of the school. He’s going to have to stop by one of the offices to get a new map so he wouldn’t look lost.

 

         “I heard Professor Daley’s back today.”

 

         That made Ahkmenrah stop in his tracks.

 

         “What?”

 

         Octavius gave him a weird look at that. Shit. He probably shouldn’t have said that. “Dude, Professor Daley? The teacher you’ve had a crush on since freshman year?” Well at least he knows one thing didn’t change in this universe. His feelings for Larry Daley seem to be evident wherever he goes, not that he’s surprised.

 

         This time he didn’t have to lie to Oct. “Um right… Just kind of blacked out for a second.”

 

         “You always do that when it comes to him, bro.” Oct threw an arm around his shoulders and gave him a friendly squeeze. “You’re practically in love with the man! Can’t blame you though, he’s pretty decent looking. Not as hot as Jed though.”

 

         “I fucking _hate_ you, Oct,” Ahk said with a blush creeping up his cheeks.

 

         “Love you, too, buddy.”

* * *

         Once in the lecture hall, the two students found that they were early. Octavius wanted to sit in the back but Ahkmenrah insisted on sitting in front. After a few minutes of arguing, Octavius was sitting in front next to Ahk with his arms crossed. “Have you seen how big this lecture hall is, Oct? How the hell are you going to take down notes?”

 

         “You’re such a nerd sometimes.”

 

         “A nerd who wants to pass this class.”

 

         “Prof loves you, bro! You could not come in for an entire _month_ and he’d still give you a one.”

 

         “Then maybe this is more for _you_ than it is for _me_.”

 

         Before Oct could give another retort, the rest of the class filed in and he shut his mouth in annoyance. Ahk gave him a triumphant smile and rummaged through his backpack for anything useful to use for class. Thankfully, the same backpack his tablet was in also had the essentials for school. Just as he took out what he recognized was a laptop from his bag, the door opened and the room went silent.

 

         There he was.

 

         “It’s nice to know I don’t have to yell ‘settle down’ before I start the class.” Professor Daley scanned the room quickly, placing his bag on the table. “This means one of either two things: You respect me enough to listen or I’m scary. Or you’re all quiet because you’re waiting for me to screw up.” The class all chuckled at that and the Professor smiled. “Don’t worry, I got that a lot as a kid, nothing new.”

 

         He then gave the class another smile but this time his eyes held a mischievous glint. He raised both hands slightly and looked right in the middle of the room. Ahkmenrah could have sworn he saw the Professor look straight at him but before he could comprehend it, he clapped his hands twice and he was plunged into total darkness. The class gasped loudly, including Ahkmenrah but soon another light, dimmer this time, appeared behind him.

 

         “Nothing is ever new about history.” The entire class turned around in their seats and tried to locate where their teacher’s voice was. Even Octavius seemed to be more engaged than before. “The only time there is new history is if a discovery is made about a thousand year old relic or theory.” The dim light projected from the back of the room was blocked and the students stared in awe at the slim silhouette of their Professor.

 

         “But history is not just a thing of the past. It’s a thing of the present, guiding us as we make our decisions. It’s a thing of the future, where a result of our actions could lead to greater things. This is where history could be born again.” Ahkmenrah followed Professor Daley’s shadow as he ran around the back of the room and sat on the railing of the stairs in the middle. “So I would like to reiterate what I said earlier: _nothing is ever new about history_.” He slid down the railing to the “oohs” and “aahs” of his students.

 

         Then he clapped his hands again and suddenly the professor is standing right in front of Ahkmenrah. “Nothing is new until _you_ say so.” This time, Ahk knew he was looking right at him as the main lights turned on again. He couldn’t help the bright smile that graced his face and the light blush that colored his cheeks. A thunderous applause broke out, and Professor Daley humbly bowed and blew kisses into the crowd. “Thank you! Thank you! I’ll be here all semester!”

 

         “Hey, heart eyes McGee!”

 

         Ahk turned his head to look at a very smug looking Octavius and his blush deepened. “Better tone down the intellectual boner.” His friend gave him a light hearted wink before turning his attention back to their teacher, fully aware of the fact that Ahkmenrah’s face was as red as a tomato. 

* * *

         “P-Professor Daley?”

 

         Larry looked up from fixing the papers in his bag to see a bouncing Ahkmenrah right in front of him. Yes, Ahkmenrah King. His most exceptional student. “Hello there Ahkmenrah, how did you find today’s class?” He gave the younger man a lopsided smile before sitting down on the edge of his table.

 

         “If only I could find the words to describe how fantastic it was.” The happy shimmer in his student’s eyes told him that he wasn’t lying. When has Ahkmenrah ever lied to him anyway?

 

         “That surprises me, Ahkmenrah. You’re usually such a wordsmith!” The deep blush that spread on Ahkmenrah’s cheeks got him smiling. He was always such a humble student with a bigger heart than anyone he’s ever known. “I hope your proficiency in words won’t be affected in this semester’s final paper, yeah?” His student shook his head no, a bit more enthusiastic than usual.

 

         “Oh gosh no! You won’t be disappointed, Professor Daley. I promise it will be the best paper you’ve ever read.”

 

         “Hardly a difficult feat considering your last paper, Ahk. Are you sure you can handle the pressure?”

 

         “Make sure to have a tissue box ready when you read it. I _guarantee_ it will bring you to tears.”

 

         “Make do on that promise, young man!”

 

         With another giddy smile, Ahkmenrah thanked him and walked backwards out of the lecture hall. “See you tomorrow, Professor!” With that statement, his more impatient roommate dragged Ahkmenrah out of the hall with a roll of his eyes. His hand shot up to give him a wave before an irritated Octavius dragged him out of his sight. Larry chuckled at Ahkmenrah’s actions and he turned back to fixing the papers in his bag.

 

         Once he was sure that his students were gone, Larry’s easy smile dropped from his lips. Talking to Ahkmenrah triggered a painful memory that he couldn’t escape. No matter how hard he tried to suppress it, the memory would always rear its ugly head. Nevertheless, seeing Ahkmenrah smile so bright shed a small light in the dark crevices of his mind. He was happy. That was all that mattered right?

 

         "Hello, _darling_.”

 

         The voice from the door stopped his hands in mid-action and Larry tried so hard not to cry on the spot. “I’m feeling very upset today, darling. Care to help me feel better?” The uneasy professor shut his eyes tight for a brief moment, shakily zipping his bag. He faced the person standing in the doorway and gave them a half smile. God knows he can’t ever really smile in front of them. After wiping the sweat off his hands on the front of his pants, he reluctantly stepped towards the door.

 

         “Y-Yes dear. I’d be h-happy to help.”

* * *

           _A huge, looming figure encapsulated him in total darkness and a cold sensation swept his spine. There was pain but no physical blows. There was nothing but darkness, making him curl up into himself, trying so hard to figure out what the hell was going on. Where was he? Where was the light? Where were his friends? He felt like he was stipped of his clothing, bare except for his underwear. He tried to cover himself up and disregarded the fact that he was engulfed in nothing but blackness._

 

_“Please don’t hurt him! He’s just a boy!”_

 

_Was that Larry?_

 

_“Fuck I’ll do anything! Just don’t touch him!”_

 

_“Absolutely anything?” That was another voice he could not recognize._

 

_“Anything… Fuck… Please don’t hurt him. I’ll take his place.”_

 

_“Well then, this will be fun.” The voice was more distorted this time, almost sounding like a broken record.  He tried to scream, kick, do anything to help Larry. He was in trouble; he heard it all, yet he was just sitting there doing nothing. When he screamed, no sound came out. When he tried to kick, his legs were weighed down like they were filled with water. He felt absolutely helpless._

 

_“Ahk!”_

 

_That was neither Larry nor the other scary voice._

 

“Ahk! Wake up dude!”

 

Ahkmenrah’s eyes flew open suddenly and he sat up in his bed. He was breathing heavily as if he just ran a marathon. His heart was beating fast and loud in his ears as if he was just barely saved from drowning. Once his vision was clear enough, he looked around and found that he was back in his room. It was nighttime, the full moon casting a large circular light in the middle of the cheap gray carpet.

 

         “Huh? W-What happened? I don’t understand--”

 

         “Hey Ahk, calm down!” Jedediah sat down on his bed with his hands held out cautiously. Ahk stared at him in confusion and looked around him. “You were having a nightmare, bro.” Jed placed the back of his hand on Ahk’s forehead with his face scrunching up in concern. He heard a few shuffles come from behind him and Ahk found that they were not alone. In fact, the entire floor of the dorm they resided in came in to see what was going on.

 

         Teddy, the eldest out of all of them, stepped closer and knelt beside his bed. “You alright, lad? Do you need water? Some pain medication? More pillows?”

 

         “Slow down, Roosevelt! He’s still out of it.” Said a female voice and Ahk’s eyes darted towards the source. He was pleasantly surprised to see that it was Sacagawea. A much younger, more irritated Sacagawea.

 

         “Ms. Lemhi, honestly--”

 

         “Ms. Lemhi? You’re not a politician yet, _Rosie.”_

 

         “Can both of you shut the fuck up! I’m better now, geez!” Ahk threw his comforter off of his legs and glared at the bickering pair. If he thought that Jed and Oct’s arguing in the museum was bad then he seriously takes it back. Apparently in this universe, Teddy still hasn’t gotten the courage to tell Sacagawea his feelings. Judging by the way he blushed when she looked at him, visible even in the dim lighting, that particular aspect hasn’t changed.

 

         “ _Somebody_ woke up on the wrong side of the sarcophagus.” Said Jedediah as he scooted over to the edge of the bed to let Ahk have more room. “But seriously Ahk, are you alright? You scared us when you started thrashing around and screaming shit.”

 

         “What was I screaming?” Jed looked a bit conflicted to say anything else but Ahk’s wide, gray eyes were sometimes way too easy to give in to. How did his parents survive raising this kid?

 

         “You said something along the lines of ‘ _let me out!’_ and _‘home’._ I figured probably it was homesickness but you’re not that kind of guy…” Before he could say another word, Octavius placed a hand on Jedediah’s shoulder, a signal for him to stop. Ahkmenrah’s face was compressed with distraught and he tried so hard not to cry. _Fuck. Not again._ _This is not the time for you to break down. Don’t think about the museum. Don’t think about home._

 

_Especially Larry._

 

_Don’t think about Larry._

 

He was visibly shaking now and Ahk had to cover his face with the oversized sleeves of the sweater he found in the closet. The other residents of the dorm who didn’t know Ahk too well slowly left the room to give them more privacy. After a few minutes of Ahkmenrah trying to keep down the sobs caught in his throat, the only people left in the room now were Teddy, Sacagawea, Jed and Oct. Being surrounded by familiar, yet slightly different, faces helped calm him down a bit.

 

         Ahk took slow, deep breaths for a few minutes before he was able to look up again. “I-I’m sorry.”

 

         “You have nothing to be sorry about, Ahk. It just took us all by surprise, that’s all.” Said Sacagawea as she sat next to him. She allowed him to lay his head on her shoulder and Ahk was glad to know that the warm, motherly Sacagawea he knew back home was still here in this universe. He scrunched his eyebrows together at the very thought of universes again. He couldn’t figure out what the pattern was supposed to be. It was completely random and it wasn’t settling right for him.

 

         Before he could dwell on it any further, Jedediah clapped his hands once and startled the inhabitants of the room. “I know exactly how to make you feel better Ahk!”

 

         “I’d rather not hear it.”

 

         “Aw come on! It involves popcorn and a little warrior lady named _Mulan_.”

 

         A beat of silence passed, a quiet exchange between Sacagawea and Ahk happening in between, before the rest of the students filed out of the room.

* * *

 

         Nothing.

 

         Absolutely nothing.

 

         No useful information on alternate universes in the Bobst library. No books with detailed explanations. Nothing. So much for the use of 12 floors. More like 12 floors of this library wasted.

 

         It took a lot of willpower for him not to flip the table over but one look at the librarian stopped him in his tracks. It’s hopeless, he’ll never find out what the tablet was doing to him. Transporting him to alternate universe was one thing. But making sure that Larry was in each and every one of them? _That is cruel._

 

The only thing he’s noticed from his little field trip was that his time in each universe gets longer. In the first one, he lasted a couple of hours. In the second one, he lasted a couple of days. Right now, it’s been a month since he’s been here and he hasn’t been transported back home or to another reality. To say he was getting tired was an understatement. Being a college student was fun with parties, his classes and late night drinking with his dorm mates but one can only do so much _pretending_ before he goes crazy.

 

         He checked the time on the digital clock on the librarian’s desk and saw that it was 5:30. It’s earlier than he expected to end but what else could he do? He can’t find anything at this point and if this truly is his last universe, he might as well start working on that term paper for Professor Daley’s class. After going through all the homework needed to be done, he realized he’s been putting them off for weeks and he figures _maybe_ Professor Atilla wouldn’t be too happy.

 

         After he’s stacked the books neatly in the middle of his table, he greeted the librarian goodbye before shoving his hands into his hoodie pockets. He whistled nonchalantly for 2 minutes before his lips suddenly went dry at what he just saw in the street across from him. Unless his eyes were messing with him, he recognized the figure in the near distance as Professor Daley. But he wasn’t alone.

 

         Suddenly his blood ran cold when the other person grabbed Professor Daley’s arm and dragged him down an alleyway. Without a second thought, Ahk took off his backpack, rummaged through it for a bit and took out his cellphone. After figuring out how to turn it back on, he went through the contacts and tapped on the first name he saw. It rang for a few seconds and soon enough, someone answered.

 

         **“Hey Ahk, what’s up?”**

 

         “I need your help.”

* * *

          “Are you sure you want to do this?”

 

         “Yes.”

 

         “I mean there is a much safer way to do it…”

 

         “Sac, you’re a hacker. When was this ever safe?”

 

         “Ugh fine… But you owe me, King!”

 

         Ahkmenrah only gave his friend a lopsided smile and she rolled her eyes at him. If he weren’t such a good guy, she would never do any of this. She limited herself to 3 hacks a month. By giving her this job, Ahk’s pushed it to 4. “The security cameras near the Bobst library right?” Ahk nodded and she got right to work. The younger student watched as Sacagawea’s hands flew around the keyboard, the _tap tap tap_ of the keys being the only sound in the room other than their breathing.

 

         What was only supposed to be a few minutes turned into 2 hours and within that time, Ahk has gone to the bathroom 5 times, the convenience store 3 times and charged his phone once. “You told me it wouldn’t take too long.”

 

         _“You_ try breaking the law to spy on your crush!”

 

         “I’m not going to spy on him!”

 

         “Yeah I know, you _think_ he’s in danger.

 

         “No. I _know_ he’s in danger. Please Sac…” Now Ahk was doing the infamous puppy dog eyes that Jed talked about all the time. She has never witnessed its power until now and damn it he was good. She stuck her tongue out at him before she went back to work. After a few more minutes, she turned around in her swivel chair and gave him a huge smile. “Tada!” Ahk raised an eyebrow at her and pulled his chair next to hers.

 

         “You told me to just get the cameras near the library right? Well, I one-upped you!” On the screen was a display of 6 cameras’ feedback. Sacagawea pressed the spacebar and 6 more flashed on screen. She pressed it again and 6 more showed.

 

         “Holy shit.”

 

         “I got all of the cameras on campus and about a few more some kilometers within the vicinity of NYU. This enough?”

 

         “I-It’s more than enough! Thank you!” Ahk gave her a one armed hug and Sacagawea could only hug him back. He only ever asked this of her once. If it was anybody else, say Jedediah for example, she would have flat out said no. “Alright, let’s go see what’s happened to Professor Daley.” He took the wireless mouse Sacagawea offered him and clicked through all of the footage. It didn’t take long though because he was able to catch Professor Daley walk up to the front door of his house within minutes.

 

         Normally, that wouldn’t alarm him but with the way he was craddling his arm against his chest and how his eyes darted to the sides a bit too much, this was something to worry about. “He’s alone.” He inquired, shaking his head a little bit.

 

         “Is that bad?” Sacagawea said with narrowed eyes at the screen.

 

         “H-He was with someone when I saw him.”

 

         “Oh. That’s definitely not good.”

 

         “Definitely.”

 

         Sacagawea placed her arms on the computer desk and let out a loud sigh. “What are you going to do?” Ahk took his eyes off of the screen for a second to look at his friend. He mimicked her position on the table and laid his head on top of his crossed arms. He watched Professor Daley struggle with getting the key in the look, which made something click in Ahk’s brain. He slowly raised his head up, a smile soon creeping up his face and Sacagawea was worried that he’d gone mental within a second.

 

         “I have a really stupid plan that just might work.”

 

         “Does this really stupid plan involve me?”

 

         “Of course it does.”

 

         She shouldn’t have done this fourth hack. But with one look at Ahkmenrah’s desperate face, she knew she couldn’t say no anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can we start the hacker!wea obsession now?


	5. The One With The Backstory (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Continuation) Ahkmenrah goes to confront Larry about the mysterious person who dragged him in the alleyway. The college professor did not paint him a pretty picture.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: GRAPHIC DEPICTIONS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE AND PEDOPHILIA IN THIS CHAPTER!!! I WILL BOLD THE PARTS WITH PEDOPHILIA AND ABUSE IN IT SO YOU CAN EASILY SKIP IF YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE READING IT!!!!

Ahkmenrah gathered as many people as he could to save Professor Daley. By many, he meant _very_ few. 

 

        There were some who were skeptical enough to back out immediately but he was grateful to know that his friends stood by him. Jedediah and Octavius jumped on the bandwagon right away without even an explanation. All Ahk had to say was “I need back-up.” And they followed him straight out of the dorm room with only a single glance shared between them.

 

         It took a lot of convincing for Teddy but eventually he said yes when he learned Sacagawea was helping too. He denied that she was the reason, saying that Professor Daley was a great teacher and a wonderful man and all that shit. Ahkmenrah only gave him a smile and a fond eye roll. “You’ll be working with your crush anyway.” That made Teddy stop in his tracks and a few trickles of sweat rolled down the sides of his head.

 

         “I-I never said she was my crush!” said Teddy with a soft punch directed at Ahk’s shoulder.

 

         “You’re not denying it either.” He said with a raised eyebrow and all Teddy could do was blush and look down. He’s smitten. There’s no denying that. He’s seen enough in his universe to know. “C’mon, let’s go meet the others. It’s best not to delay this.” So with an embarrassed cough and a nod of his head, Teddy followed Ahkmenrah to Sacagawea’s room. One of the only rooms with a single bed in the dorm.

 

       When they opened the door, the rest of them were there. The rest meaning Sacagawea, Jedediah and Octavius. Sacagawea’s dog, Rexy, ran up to him immediately once he closed the door and he petted the furball on the head before settling on the bed. Normally dogs weren’t allowed in the dorms but Rexy was quiet during Dormitory Inspections. Most of the time, he’s tangled up in the computer wires strewn across Sacagawea’s floor. He knows better not to bite them of course.

 

         It took a full minute of silence before Jed rolled his eyes and said in a loud voice: “Take it away, Ahkmenrah King! What is this oh so important mission you have called us here for today?” He gestured towards Ahk with jazz hands and a cheeky smile and Ahk only shook his head fondly. Ahkmenrah then started to talk about what happened a few hours ago as well as the research Sacagawea did while the rest of the occupants of the room listened attentively.

 

         After a few minutes of explaining, Jed’s cheeky smile faded and was replaced with a concerned frown. He gently took Octavius’ hand on his knee and grasped it tightly with both hands. Teddy had a hand frozen mid-pat on Rexy’s head. Sacagawea only smiled sadly, making eye contact with Teddy, who promptly brought his gaze to the floor. They shared a quick moment of silence before Jed’s determined gaze fell on Ahkmenrah.

           

         “Where do we come in, kemosabe?”

* * *

         With everything in place, Ahkmenrah left for Professor Daley’s house.

 

          Truth be told, he was nervous and he was shaking until his bones but he couldn’t show that. Khonsu knows he couldn’t look weak when Larry was in a much worse state. Larry saved him countless times before, he could afford to do it one more time. He would do it again and again even if it killed him. He has proven that before, this universe’s Larry will see that too. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt his phone buzz in his jean pocket.

 

            He took it out and glanced at the screen. It was a text from Sacagawea.

 

             **From Sac:** _Be careful_

 

            He smiled down at his phone before sending her a text back.

 

            **To Sac:** _I will_

 

            Seconds later, another text came in.

 

            **From Sac:** _Don’t die_

 

            **To Sac:** _No promises…_

 

With that last statement, he locked his phone and headed straight for Larry’s house. Formalities were irrelevant at this point. All that mattered was he had to get to Larry before it was too late. He didn’t know what could happen if he saw that person that dragged Larry into an alleyway before sending the frightened professor back home alone. Worse case scenario, he would run into them. Best-case scenario, he would get Larry to safety without any problem.

 

         The terrifying thing is he doesn’t know what’s in store.

 

         All he saw was a large figure dragging Larry away. He didn’t know what they did to him but judging from the security camera footage, it wasn’t anything good. If he was able to get to Larry without any complication, he’s got a first aid kit placed in his backpack by Teddy. “To tend to any wounds he might have.” He said to him. Hopefully they were just wounds but he’s sure that’s not the case.

 

         It took him exactly 37 minutes to get from the dorm room to Larry Daley’s house just on the outskirts of the University. By this time, the sun was starting to set which meant that he had to work fast. His phone buzzed in his pocket again and he took it out to see Jedediah calling him. He checked his watch, 15 minutes until estimated sundown, before clicking the answer button.

 

         “Jed? What is it?”

 

         _“Hey um I know this is short notice but Sac’s phone died and she wanted me to tell you somethin’ she saw.”_

 

“Is it bad?”

 

         _“Pretty bad, yeah.”_

 

“Damn it Jed just tell me! What’s wrong?”

 

         _“Professor Daley’s vilipender is on the way home.”_

 

Ahkmenrah’s proficiency in several languages came in handy and he clenched his teeth at what Jed warned him about. Using French was never a good sign. He’s going to have to work double time if Larry was ever going to be safe. “Thanks for telling me Jed.”

 

         _“You’ve got about 30 minutes. Giddy up, kemosabe.”_

 

Then Jedediah hung up the phone and Ahkmenrah found himself standing on Larry’s front porch. The fact that whoever hurt Larry was coming closer had his fist shaking by his side, which made it much harder to lift it up and knock on the door. He took a few seconds to calm himself down, it wouldn’t do well to look like a nervous wreck in front of Larry again, and he raised his trembling fist to the door. He knocked 3 times before it opened up immediately.

 

         “L-Look I’m really busy right now-- Ahkmenrah?”

 

         Larry stared disbelievingly at his student and Ahk could only give him a slight smile. “Hello Professor.”

 

         “You shouldn’t be here.” Larry said with his eyes now fixated on the floor.

 

         “I have to tell you something.”

 

         “Can’t it wait until class? I really have to do something and--”

 

         “I know about him.”

 

         Larry looked up at his student with wide eyes, which darted around as if he was expecting something to jump out. Or someone. Before Ahk could explain himself any further, Larry grabbed the front of his shirt and dragged him in the house. He shut the door as Ahk stumbled inside and locked it quickly without saying a word. His hands were shaking badly when he locked the door and Ahk had to stop himself from reaching out to him to hug him close.

 

         “How much do you know?” Larry asked gently with his hands still firmly planted against the door.

 

         “That you two have been married for 5 years, together for 10. You didn’t meet him until about 21 years ago. That’s about how old I am.”

 

         Larry didn’t seem to want him to stop so he continued on, no restrictions.

 

         “I had Sac-- I mean one of my friends do some research before I came here.” Ahk placed his bag on the floor and knelt down next to it. He began taking out folder after folder until a small stack sat next to him and all Larry could do was stare at it. “Criminal records, insurance papers, online articles, police investigations and everything. I did find something though that I couldn’t quite explain. I was hoping you’d tell me. That is, if you want to.”

 

         Larry was silent for a moment before he knelt down in front of Ahk and the stack of folders. “How did you find this?”

 

         “It doesn’t matter. I was hoping you could tell me what happened around the time of April. 1999.” Ahk took out a picture from the first folder and handed it to him. Larry's hand cradled the picture gently and ran a single finger over the image of a smiling young boy.

 

         “16 years ago.” Larry said with a blank face but the tears gathering in his eyes made his mask crack just slightly. This was so different from the Professor Daley he knew in class. The lively, enthusiastic and optimistic teacher he knew melted away into this terrified, trembling thing in front of him. It made Ahk’s heart break and he couldn’t help but place his hand on top of Larry’s that was resting on top of the folders.

 

         Ahkmenrah waited for Larry to calm down before he opened his mouth and the most astonishing story was told.

* * *

 

         _It was a sunny day, the birds were chirping and the leaves were falling softly on the front yard like ballerinas dancing in the air. A small child ran across the yard with a delighted shriek echoing in his ears and he couldn’t help but smile. The sun was high up in the sky, the rest of the neighborhood was having lunch but not little Ahkmenrah._

 

_“You can’t catch me!”_

 

_“Let’s see about that!”_

 

_The 5-year-old boy hid behind the large tree, his tiny hand covering his mouth to muffle his giggling. What he didn’t know was that Larry was already right behind him and he only knew once the older man’s arms were around his waist. “Oh no!” Once he was lifted up and spun around, Ahkmenrah could only laugh and spread his arms wide, making whooshing sounds with his mouth._

 

_“Look Larry, I’m flying!”_

 

_Larry smiled and lifted Ahkmenrah even higher to settle the child on his shoulders. “All hail the king!” He exclaimed in a deep voice, which made Ahkmenrah giggle and Larry chuckle softly. Larry marched around the yard with Ahk on his shoulders singing out an unfamiliar tune.  The two played until sunset wherein Larry settled Ahk on the stairs of the porch to watch the pink, orange and red tints of the sky swirl above them._

 

_Ahk pointed out several shapes in the clouds - dogs, cats, sheep, dinosaurs and monkeys - all while he bounced happily next to his babysitter. “I want to live in the sky! I want a castle made out of clouds and rooms made of stars! We could play everyday and tell awesome stories forever!”_

 

_“That sounds beautiful, Ahk. Do you want anybody to live with you up there?”_

 

_“You, duh!” Ahk rolled his eyes as if it was impossible for there to be a different answer to that question. “And mommy and daddy and even Kah can live with us! You will get the biggest room too because you’re my best friend!” With that statement, he threw his arms around Larry’s waist and hugged him tightly. Warmth enveloped Larry’s heart as he hugged the small child back. Nothing made him happier than seeing Ahkmenrah’s smile. Nothing could ruin this small, innocent moment._

 

_Unfortunately that moment was destroyed._

 

_A large shadow was cast around the two, which made the 5 year old look up in confusion. Larry followed his gaze and his eyes widened in fear._

 

            _There stood Lance du Lac._

 

            _“Hello Larry.”_

 

            _No. Not now. His day was going so well._

 

            _In Ahkmenrah’s point of view, the man was pretty and he knew Larry. Larry was a good guy and he was really pretty too. So he put two and two together and thought they were friends. That was the only logic a five year old could come up with after this sudden intrusion. “Hello!” He stood up enthusiastically; never noticing the way Larry’s eyes stared at both of them in worry. “My name is Ahkmenrah, what’s yours?”_

 

            _“My name is Lance. My friends jokingly call me Lancelot.” Larry didn’t like the way Lance was staring at the boy but he couldn’t just take Ahk away without an explanation. He just hoped this meeting will be short._

 

            _With the mention of Lancelot, Ahk’s eyes sparkled in glee. “Like Lancelot the knight? Larry tells me so many stories about King Arthur and his knights!” Ahk gasped suddenly and tugged on the front of Lance’s jeans. “Guess what Mr. Lance, guess what!”_

 

            _Lance chuckled darkly, which made Larry almost want to hurl._ Please don’t hurt Ahkmenrah _he silently pleaded with his eyes but the blond man only had his eyes fixed on the excitable child. “What is it Ahkmenrah?”_

 

            _“My last name is King, does that make me like Arthur too?”_

 

            _Lance’s smirk grew on his disgustingly handsome face. “It definitely does, your highness.” He bowed his head slightly and Ahkmenrah smiled widely. Larry would normally feel happy seeing Ahkmenrah smile like that but if his smile was directed at Lance, who had nothing but the worst intentions for anything innocent, made him want to punch several walls in._

 

            _Unfortunately he wasn’t that physically strong. But he could be strong for Ahkmenrah. “Ahk, why don’t you go inside and prepare the stuff we need for hot chocolate?” Now that bright smile was directed at him and it helped calm him down a bit. He could do this. Only for Ahkmenrah will he do this._

 

            _“Extra whipped cream?”_

_“Only if you don’t tell your mother.”_

 

            _With that, Ahkmenrah hugged Larry quickly, gave Lance a wave goodbye and ran inside the house towards the kitchen. Once he heard the fridge door open and a sweet voice sing out the most recent song he heard on the radio, which happened to be “Bills Bills Bills” by Destiny’s Child, before he turned towards Lance. **His expression dropped and he was absolutely fuming.**_

**_“I told you not to come here.”_            **

**_“What? Is it bad to see Ahkmenrah again after so long? Sad though, he doesn’t remember me. The last time I saw him, he was only a baby…”_**

**_“I know what you’re capable of and I want you to stay away from him. He’s only a child.” Larry’s fists were clenched at his side but Lance’s smirk never wavered._**

**_“God the things I could do to that boy…”_**

**_“Stop it.” Larry said with clenched teeth but Lance wasn’t listening._**

**_“He is the most beautiful child I’ve seen. I can’t wait to--”_**

**_“I said stop!” Yelled Larry and he grabbed the front of Lance’s leather jacket. He raised a shaking fist at the blond man, never noticing what was going on behind him._**

**_“Stop or what Larry Daley? You’ll be going back to NYU in just a few days for your final year. Within that time, the Kings will need a new babysitter. You’ll be busy finding a teaching job after you graduate too. Ahkmenrah will be all alone…” Larry couldn’t help but loosen his grip on the lapel of Lance’s jacket, which made the blue eyed man smile triumphantly._**

**_“What will you do?”_**

**_“It’s just a simple bout of manipulation, that’s all. You’re pretty familiar about that, right?”_**

**_Memories flashed in Larry’s mind at that and he shook it away. He couldn’t lose focus now._**

**_“I will not let anybody else be a subject of your manipulation, not on my watch.” He tightened his grip on his jacket again, a warning to Lance. Lance didn’t take it as a warning though, instead he took it as a challenge._**

**_“Or what, fool?” Larry winced at the old nickname. “No matter what you do, I will get to Ahkmenrah and fuck I will--”_**

 

            _“Please don’t hurt him! He’s just a boy!” He didn’t care if people heard him anymore. Tears started to gather in his eyes and his vision blurred just slightly. His hand started to tremble and his hold on Lance’s jacket slackened until it fell to his side. “Fuck… I’ll do anything!” He whispered harshly, now letting the tears fall down his cheeks. He couldn’t let Ahkmenrah feel the pain he felt with this man. He was dangerous and he would do anything to keep from this wonderful boy away from danger._

 

            _“Just don’t touch him.” His voice was raised slightly and Lance raised an eyebrow at that. Larry perfectly knows he’s remembering everything that happened between them. God knows he will go through it again to prevent it ever happening to Ahkmenrah._

 

            _He placed a cold hand on Larry’s cheek and wiped one of the tears with his thumb. “Absolutely anything?” The dark haired man let out a tiny sob at that and nodded reluctantly._

 

            _“Anything… Fuck… Please don’t hurt him. I’ll take his place. You can do whatever you want to me just not to him. Never him please…” Larry was almost full on sobbing at this point._

 

            _After a minute of silent contemplation, Lance did that damn smile. The smile Larry always thought was so beautiful before but he knew the whole thing was a lie now. “Well then, this will be fun.”_

 

            _A loud crash was the sound he heard behind him as Lance leaned in for a kiss._

 

* * *

“I told you to repress the memory as much as you could, to forget about Lance. In turn, you also forgot about me. I may or may not have also spoken to your parents to help you forget.” Larry tightened his grip on Ahkmenrah’s hand but the younger didn’t mind. “I couldn’t forget about you though. You were the only light in my life while I was with Lance. Even after I broke up with him until that awful day, you remained to be the best part of living.”

 

         “I thought breaking up with him and moving far away, to where your family lived, would keep him away. God was I wrong…”

 

         “Leave him now, then.” Ahkmenrah said and Larry shook his head no. “I’m old enough to take care of myself, Larry. You don’t have to protect me all the time.”

 

         “If I leave him, he’ll kill you.” Ahk was shocked to hear that and Larry’s voice trembled as he explained. “He’s grown much more irritable. H-He doesn’t want pleasure as much as he wants your blood.” The way Larry said it felt like he’s heard those words before. He recited them like a script from a play.

 

         “W-Why?”

 

         “I don’t know! Revenge? Bitterness? Fuck if I could ever properly read that guy!” Larry suddenly stood up then and walked around the room. He stopped for a bit in front of the door before turning towards his student with wide eyes. “You should leave now before he hurts you. I c-can’t let that happen to you. I just can’t--”

 

         “But he’s abused you for more than 7 years! We have to report him to the police, he’s done this multiple times and they never caught him. Now he wants to _commit murder_ if he has the chance! If we report him now, he’ll be answering for his crimes!”

 

         “What if he’s set free? _What will I do then?”_ Larry yelled which made Ahk flinch slightly at the volume.

 

         “Then let me protect you this time.”

 

         Larry opened his mouth to retort but a knock on the door stopped him. “Fuck… He’s here you have to go!”

 

         **_“Pet, did you lock the door again? Didn’t I tell you never to do that?”_ A British drawl came from outside which made Larry start trembling in fear.**

**“I’m not leaving.” Ahkmenrah said determinedly with his feet firmly placed on the ground. “He’s not getting away with hurting you or anyone else ever again.” Before Larry could force Ahkmenrah to hide, the door swung open and there stood a disheveled looking Lance. His large combat boots stepping into the house felt like an earthquake to Larry and he pleaded with his eyes for Ahkmenrah to run. But Ahk stayed rooted to the spot.**

**The lollipop in Lance’s mouth fell down on the floor when he spotted Larry with Ahkmenrah. “I was about to tell you I stole this little sucker from a baby but it seems that you have a _much_ more interesting story to tell me.” He moved forward slowly and slung his arm around Larry’s shuddering shoulders. “Care to introduce me to your friend?”**

**“H-He’s my student.” Larry couldn’t lie to him anymore. Ahkmenrah noticed that.**

**“Ah is this one of the students who said they’ll suck your dick for a good grade?”**

**“N-No! He’s my--”**

**“Ahkmenrah King, I believe we met 16 years ago?”**

**Lance’s smile grew at that and he chuckled softly before stepping closer to Ahkmenrah. “Well then, I wasn’t wrong when I said you were the most beautiful child I’ve ever seen. You’ve grown quite well, Ahkmenrah. Larry here though, never mentioned you were his student-- Oh!” He stopped himself and turned to look at Larry again who was trying his hardest not to sob. “You really are a sweetheart, huh? Still protecting Ahkmenrah up to now! I should applaud you for your persistence.”**

**With that statement he clapped his hands slowly and each clap made Larry flinch and bite his lip harder. All Ahk wanted to do was reach out and hold him close. But he knew he couldn’t do that. Not here, not now. He was afraid that if he touched him now, he would break and fall like a million glass shards to the cold, hard floor. Lance already shattered him enough. “Man if I knew you would grow into this…”**

**“Lance please, you promised.” whispered Larry pleadingly.**

**“Don’t worry sweetheart, I won’t touch him. Can’t prevent me from looking though right because--”**

**“Oh fuck off, asshole!” Ahkmenrah said without a second thought, which probably wasn’t a very good idea with the way both men in front of him were looking at him. Lance with a conveyance of anger and disbelief and Larry with the most heartbreaking expression shining in his sad blue eyes.**

**“ _Excuse_ me? What did you just say?” Lance said advancing slowly towards the shocked university student. “What the _fuck_ did you say to me?”**

**“Lance no h-he didn’t mean--”**

**“Stay the _fuck_ out of this!”**

 

         **Ahk could only watch as Lance turned around and slapped Larry hard in the face. He looked away when the blond man grabbed his husband’s face with one hand, making Larry protrude his slowly swelling lips. “You’ve talked out of line quite a lot today, my dear. I’m not happy about it. Either you shut up now or you’ll be sorry tonight.”** He reprimanded Larry with a sickly sweet voice, which was the last straw for Ahkmenrah.

 

         He lunged towards Lance with an angry growl that surprised even him and tackled the taller man to the floor. He flipped him over so that Lance was lying on his stomach, a loud “oof!” escaping his lips at the impact. Lance was too shocked to respond and was too late to do so until he felt cold metal press around his wrists. “What the fuck?” He looked over his shoulder to see that Ahk handcuffed him and a voice-recording device was in his hand triumphantly.

 

         “You have the right to remain silent, Lance du Lac. With permission, I have recorded Larry’s entire story and your actions towards him right now.”

 

         “Where was that the entire fucking time?”

 

         “I’m not wearing an ugly Christmas sweater because I’m excited. It’s October for fuck’s sake, now keep your head down.”

 

         Ahkmenrah sat down harshly on Lance’s back which made a moan of pain escape the man’s lips. “I told Teddy to call the police and inform him of our location if I wasn’t back in an hour. It’s been an hour and a half, they’ll be here shortly.” He smiled sweetly at the muttering man underneath him and he directed his attention at Larry. “Octavius and Jedediah will be here to bring you to our dorm. It’s best if you are in a safe environment when the police will start asking you questions. Also Sac will compile all the evidence against Lance to make _sure_ he will stay in jail.”

 

         “Why are you doing this? Why are you doing this for _me_?” Asked Larry who looked genuinely confused as to why his student, no _students,_ would go to such lengths to help him. It was as if he didn’t know how good he was. Like he didn’t know he _deserved_ to be saved just like anybody else.

 

         “I just told you.” Ahk said with a more sincere smile gracing his slightly chapped lips. “It’s my turn to protect you.”

* * *

         “Is he asleep?”

 

         “Yeah I think he’s asleep.”

 

         “Do you think we should get him a blanket? Maybe a pillow?”

 

         “He’s pretty knocked out right now, though. Would he even notice it?”

 

         “I’m still awake, you know.”

 

         Ahkmenrah chuckled softly from his position next to Larry who was smiling at the four students standing by the doorway. He sat up slowly, hissing slightly at the sudden stab of pain he felt on his left arm. Sometimes he forgot that it was broken. When did he even break it? He doesn't remember anymore. The last few hours passed by in such a blur. “I appreciate the support, kids but I’ll be fine.”

 

         “Maybe you can sleep in here tonight.” Ahk suggested gently while he placed a concerned hand on his shoulder. “You can take my bed and I’ll sleep on the floor--”

 

         “Why don’t you sleep in our bed, Ahky? After everything that happened tonight you deserve a good night’s rest.” Asked Jedediah and Ahk could only give him an incredulous look.

 

         “Are you serious? You guys regularly fornicate in between those sheets. I’d rather take the floor than sleep in your cocktail of semen and sweat.”

 

         His two roommates blushed deeply with those words being said near a _teacher_ but Professor Daley didn’t even mind at all. In fact, he even nodded in agreement which made the two blush even harder. Ahkmenrah turned back to his professor and gave him an encouraging smile. “You can sleep in my bed, I don’t mind. I’m used to staying up all night.” Ahk said with a glint in his eye at his own inside joke.

 

         Larry was way too tired to object so he nodded with a weary smile. Soon enough, everybody said their goodnights and left the room. Well technically only Teddy and Sacagawea left when they felt their help was no longer needed. Ahk may or may not have seen Teddy sling an arm around Sacagawea as they went out but he decided not to mention that. Jedediah and Octavius slipped into bed after a long shower together. Ahkmenrah shuddered at the picture it painted in his head.

 

            He stared at the ceiling quietly once everyone was fast asleep. His mind started drifting back to what happened a few hours ago. He checked the alarm clock on his bedside table and saw that it was already one o’clock. He figured the police coming and questioning them all actually did take a long time. He looked at the finally peacefully sleeping Larry in his bed. He was hugging one of his pillows close and his face was smashed up against it, a snore escaped his lips afterwards.

 

            At that moment, nothing mattered but the fact that Larry was safe.

 

            At that moment, golden tendrils of light started to float through the air towards him.

 

            At that moment, the golden light enveloped him much more gently and the familiar uneasy feeling never came. Only a soft humming started to echo in his ears as the world around him started to fade into black. It almost felt like his mind was singing him a lullaby. He wasn’t uncomfortable anymore. He was almost at ease.

 

            At that moment, Ahkmenrah wasn’t even surprised anymore. He just closed his eyes and allowed the tablet to take him where it wanted to take him.

 

            He just hoped it would take him home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little shoutout to all the Lance/Ahk shippers who might have stumbled on to this fic for kicks. I'm sorry. You all still rock tho.


	6. The One Where It's Almost There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fourth Alternate Universe: Ahkmenrah's back home... but things are slightly bit different from what he knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M NOT GONNA LIE THIS WAS MY FAVORITE CHAPTER TO WRITE
> 
> Just think about every night at the museum fanfic cliche/twist you can come up with. It's probably in here.
> 
> Hope you all have fun reading it as much as I had fun writing it! 
> 
> This chapter was brought to you by cheap 3-in-1 coffee packs, Mountain Dew, and my tears at 12 midnight.

When Ahkmenrah opened his eyes, it felt like a routine.

 

         Naturally, he was plunged into usual darkness. He wasn’t scared as much as he was annoyed. What could he do? He wasn’t going to wake up to vibrant reds or pretty pinks or soft greens. It was always black. It made him feel more empty rather than fill him with dread that the worst could be coming once light appears.

 

         He stopped his thoughts for a moment and sighed. He really should stop watching Downtown Abbey on Netflix if he was starting to think like that. It was making him sound more pretentious than he usually was, even if he was a pharaoh. Just as he was deciding between just falling back asleep and moving his limbs, something above him moved which allowed light to filter into his vision. He blinked rapidly so his eyes were able to focus.

 

         He stared up at the silhouette looking down on him and scrunched his eyes a little tighter. He couldn’t quite make out the features; the light behind them was still too bright. After a few seconds of squinting, Ahk figured it looked like a man. It looked like a very unfamiliar man.

 

         “Good evening, Ahkmenrah.”

 

         He doesn’t recognize this voice. Was this another bad man who wanted to hurt him? He’s had quite a lot of that lately but judging by the man’s gentle voice, he wasn’t entirely evil. Who knows? He could be wrong. Then he ran his words through his head again and almost sat up in earnest. He said good evening. _Good evening, Ahkmenrah._ His last two trips, he woke up in the morning. Only in his first transportation did he wake up at night.

 

         And during that time, he was in the _museum_.

 

         This time he did sit up, placing his hands on both sides of his sarcophagus, and he looked around excitedly. His tablet was on the wall like it usually was; his bandages placed in a neat pile by his feet and his large stone jackal guards watching him carefully. He was home. He was back in the museum. No evil night guards, no sand between his toes and no pedophilic assholes. He was back home and he couldn’t be any happier. He expressed his delight with a small fist pump and a joyous “whoop!” which resulted in a small chuckle from his right.

 

         “You’re excited today, Ahkmen. It’s cute.”

 

         Ahk turned his head to his right and suddenly his happiness meter went down.

 

         There stood a man in a night guard uniform but it wasn’t Larry. Larry was a brunette, this guard was a blond. Larry had beautiful, sparkling grey-blue eyes; his was a much brighter blue. Larry stood only a few inches taller than him; this guy was almost an entire foot above him. The only thing that seemed to be similar between the two was the nose but it still wasn’t enough. This wasn’t his Larry. This wasn’t his night guard.

 

         The way the man smiled at him though made him realize that in this universe, _he was his._

 

“You won’t believe what Nicole did today in school.” The blond man knelt next to Ahk’s sarcophagus with a delighted glint in his eyes. Nicole. Who the hell was Nicole? Who the hell was this man? Ahk’s brain swirled in his head as he blankly stared at the night guard. “After that entire fiasco in the Smithsonian, she used our adventures for her English class. Would you believe that, Ahk? She even included the kiss…” He shook his head at the fond memory that Ahk knew nothing about.

 

         _Kiss._

 

That was the kiss that happened between Amelia and Larry in his universe. When he found out about that, he wouldn’t speak to Larry for a week. He had to lie and say that he wasn’t feeling well so he wouldn’t be too worried. “Thank God her school isn’t homophobic. They’re pretty progressive so she didn’t have to change any pronouns. She just changed our names. Mine to Larry and yours to Josh. It’s cute, I’ll let you read it later.”

 

         Nicole sounded absolutely lovely. The adventure in the Smithsonian sounded almost like a fairytale when this man told it. Maybe because it _was_ a fairytale. It never happened to him. This handsome young man was smiling over a memory they didn’t share. He was reminiscing a key point in his life that Ahk has no idea about. It made his heart ache for two things;

 

         He wishes he had those memories.

 

         He also wishes he had them with _Larry_.

 

         “You alright? Y-You’re--” The blond man suddenly caressed his face and Ahk felt bad when he imagined that it was Larry doing that to him.

 

         Only when the young man wiped the pad of his thumb across his cheek did Ahkmenrah find out he was crying. It felt strange. He didn’t even notice when the first tear fell but there was nothing that could stop them now. “Oh my god, babe… I-I don’t know why you’re crying but I’m here, okay? I’ve always been here. Come on…” Before he knew it, Ahk’s head was resting on the guy’s chest and he was listening to the erratic beat of his heart.

 

         His shoulder started visibly shaking now and he honestly couldn’t figure out why. He was doing so well in keeping it together for the longest time. He was so good at playing pretend. “I-I’m sorry I--”

 

         “Don’t be sorry, Ahkmen. I understand.”

 

         _No you don’t._

 

“I’m here, okay? You have nothing to be afraid of, yeah? I’m here.”

 

         _I don’t even know who you are._

 

“You’ll be alright.”

 

         _You’re but a stranger with kind words to me._

 

He didn’t know how long he cried on this stranger’s chest but he obviously didn’t seem to mind it at all. After what felt like hours when in reality it’s only been a few minutes, Ahkmenrah’s harsh cries turned into muffled sniffles. He didn’t care that this was a stranger anymore. He only cared that there was someone, even if it wasn’t Larry, who was willing to hold him. He squeezed his eyes tightly when he remembered that this _still_ wasn’t Larry.

 

         “Daddy?”

 

         The man still didn’t pull away from Ahkmenrah but raised his voice slightly to inquire whoever was calling. He assumed that it was Nicole. Ahkmenrah was instead the one who pulled away only because he wanted to see her. He shifted his position slightly to get a better look and there stood a small, blond girl at the entrance of his exhibit. At the nod of her father’s head, she stepped closer and Ahk was able to see that she shared some of the same features as Nicky.

 

         The smile was one of them.

 

         “Hey there pumpkin, c’mere.” Nicole immediately ran to her father and hugged him from the side. She stared at Ahkmenrah with the same concerned blue eyes she inherited from her father. It made Ahk slightly uncomfortable to have two unfamiliar faces staring at him.

 

         “Are you okay Ahk?” It was eerie how much Nicole sounded almost exactly like 13 year old Nicky. Fortunately, it helped him pretend again.

 

         “I am now, Nicole. Thank you for showing concern.”

 

         “That’s good because I kind of wanted to ask you a few things for my History class. I decided to do a paper on you!” She jumped slightly in excitement and Ahk smiled warmly. Who was he to destroy her joy?

 

         “Nicole, Ahk probably isn’t in the right state to--”

 

         “It’s quite alright um--” Ahk paused slightly when he realized he didn’t know his name. He discreetly glanced down at the nametag on his uniform and saw the shiny letters form _CHRIS._ “Chris! Yes uh she can ask me as many questions as she wants. I too crave her thirst for knowledge, we have that in common.” He held out a clenched fist for her and she bumped it with her own as she giggled. Chris looked at him suspiciously but shrugged eventually.

 

         “Alright. You’ve only got an hour though, young lady.” Chris firmly reminded his daughter. “Ahk still has a job to do, you know. There’s been an increase in demand.”

 

         “Demand for what?” Asked Ahkmenrah and Chris looked at him as if he was astonished that he wouldn’t know. When Ahk was still genuinely confused after a minute, Chris chuckled and took the pharaoh’s hand in his.

 

         “Who else would they demand for but you?”

* * *

 

         There were just a few things that Ahkmenrah noticed that bothered him.

 

         No. Not just a few things. Make it several things.

 

         He was given the rest of the night off after 4 hours of entertaining questions from many little kids. Chris called it his mandatory break because he’s the most popular exhibit and the “actor” needed a breather now and then. He was grateful for that because that gave him the opportunity to check out the rest of the museum. Chris was a drastic enough change; he dreaded to see what was left in store for him.

 

         The first thing that was different was Teddy. He was still a president but the minor detail changed there was he wasn’t the 26th president of the United States. He was the _27th._ Nothing was too drastic about that, the museum was still here and he was the same Teddy as always. He and Sacagawea were still together, which calmed Ahk down just a little bit.

 

         The second thing he noticed was Dexter. He was _Dixie_ now. It didn’t bother him as much. She was more gentle and less mean to Chris than Dexter is to Larry. That’s good at least.

 

         The third thing he noticed was Jedediah and Octavius. They were still best friends and did small pranks to some of the customers. However, Jedediah wasn’t the cowboy anymore. _Octavius_ was. It was strange to see Octavius speak in a southern drawl and Jedediah as the regal leader of the miniature Romans.

 

         Actually it was already disturbing seeing Jedediah in Octavius’ clothes so he decided not to dwell on that any further.

 

         The last thing he noticed was something missing. He checked all the floors and every room and he couldn’t find it. It perplexed him enough to finally go to Chris. He was denying needing Chris’ help entirely but this was something he needed answers to. Even Rexy becoming a Brontosaurus didn’t need any explanation for him.

 

         Ahk spent the better part of 5 minutes looking for the blond night guard. Thankfully he found him in the night guard office taking one of his sporadic 10 minute breaks. He knocked on the door once and was greeted by a chubby cheeked Chris. His lips were covered with powdered sugar and a donut with a single bite taken out of it was in his hand. His eyes widened for a millisecond but he relaxed instantly when he saw that it was Ahkmenrah.

 

            “Hey sunshine, what’s up?” Chris placed the unfinished donut on a paper plate on top of his desk and wiped his lips before standing up. Ahk stayed rooted to his spot as Chris came closer and gave a slightly sugary kiss on his cheek. That caused Ahk to blush uncontrollably. Chris has no idea that he’s been imagining these sorts of things before. The acknowledging smiles, the sweet kisses and the warm embraces, all of it.

 

            He imagined it all with Larry.

 

            “Uh hey Chris I was meaning to ask you something.”

 

            “Shoot!”

 

            “Do you ever feel like something was missing?”

 

            “Um… what do you mean? Did any of the exhibits go out? Because if that happened then McPhee is going to murder--” But Ahkmenrah stopped him before he could go into any irrational conclusions.

 

            “No! Um none of the exhibits escaped. They’re all doing their jobs, as they should be.” He patted Chris’ chest in reassurance before continuing. “I just feel like something should be in the corner of the corridor opposite my exhibit?”

 

            “Really? It’s always been that way. Do you think we need more decorations? I thought having the skeleton of a brontosaurus walk around was exciting enough…” No. This couldn’t be. “I was thinking of getting maybe a cut out of Al Capone be sent here but that seemed too much of a stretch.” He should be joking right? He’s definitely joking.

 

            “Ever thought about an… Easter Island head?”

 

            The look of absolute loss on Chris’ face filled him with dread.

 

            “A what? Easter Island? That sounds like a place in Neverland. Which reminds me, do you feel like watching Peter Pan tomorrow for--” Chris noticed the distressed expression on the pharaoh’s face and quickly shifted into concern. “Ahk? You okay?” _No. I’m not._ The pharaoh looked around, his eyes landing on Chris for a second before he bolted out of the room.

 

            He may or may not have heard Chris call out for him but he kept running. He didn’t know exactly what he was running from but he just knew he had to be alone. Once he got to his exhibit, he ordered his jackal guards not to let anybody in. “Just don’t stab them… Especially Chris. He’s going to find out where I am eventually.” The jackals wordlessly nodded to their pharaoh and took their place at the entrance.

           

            With his heart racing and his breath coming out of his mouth in short little gasps, he shakily sat down next to his sarcophagus. The AC was turned up high enough for Chris to wear a fur-trimmed jacket over his night guard uniform but to Ahk it felt like it was a million degrees warmer. He took off his crown and placed it beside him, running a hand through his sweat slicked hair. This was getting ridiculous. “Taking Larry out was one thing… But the Moai?” He said more to the empty space in front of him than to himself.

 

         As he tried to calm himself down with his head ducked in between his legs, he started thinking about Chris. He was no Larry but he was awkward like him, talked a little bit like him and cared about every exhibit just like him. He proved tonight how sweet he was, not only to him but to his daughter. If anything, this was the Larry in this universe. This twisted universe that had everything he loved and either took it away or messed it up.

 

            He looked over his shoulder to the tablet displayed on the wall. This was all its fault. He didn’t know what that hunk of gold was trying to tell him but he was _this_ close to losing his mind.

 

         Removing the Easter Island Head was a bold move. (“ _Dum-Dum in love with other Dum-Dum!” the moai said once to him)_ The tablet knew its significance in his life.

 

         “You’re not taking me home tonight, are you?” He asked it between gritted teeth.

 

         The tablet, obviously, didn’t answer.

 

         After a few minutes - or possibly an hour - of staring at that tablet, he heard careful footsteps making its way towards him. He didn’t have to look up to know it was Chris. He convinced his guards somehow. “Ahkmen… I’m not here to force you to talk. I’m here to--” He held up a shaking hand to stop him from talking. Chris shut up immediately. _Why did this man have to be so sweet?_

 

         “Can you hold me? Please?” He whispered, afraid that if he said anything above that volume his voice would betray him and a dam would break. He bit his lower lip hard when Chris took his place next to him and wrapped his arms around him. He melted into the embrace and allowed himself to cry again. There was nothing else he could do anymore. There was nothing he could make the tablet do either. He could possibly be stuck in this universe for an even longer time than the last.

 

         No. He was absolutely sure that his time here will be the longest.

 

         “Don’t leave me, okay?” He said, his voice slightly muffled against Chris’ chest. The blond man only hugged him tighter and kissed the top of his sweat matted head.

 

         “I won’t let you down.”

 

         If there was one thing Ahkmenrah could do, and do well, it was pretend. So pretend he did. He pretended he was in love with Chris and not with Larry. If it made the pain in his heart numb then he’ll let it happen. He’ll let himself be held. He’ll let himself be kissed. He’ll try to fall in love with a man such as Chris. Sweet, kind, loving Chris who has nothing but stars in his eyes when he looks at him. That’s something he could do.

 

         Not like he could do anything else.

* * *

         Every Sunday night the occupants of the museum would gather in the main lobby for movie night.

 

         Every movie night, Chris would sit beside him and offer him popcorn or candy.

 

         Every movie night, Ahkmenrah always ended up asleep and curled up against Chris.

 

         Every movie night, Chris would carry him bridal style to his exhibit, lay 2 or 3 blankets on the floor, and kiss him on the forehead.

 

         Every movie night, Chris would have another night to plan his big surprise.

 

         “How many days left, gigantor?” Octavius asked from his position on his right shoulder.

 

         “15 more days.”

* * *

          Christmas at the museum was always so magical.

 

         The tablet wasn’t the only thing capable of making ordinary stuff look like they came from a fairytale book. If one thing remained, it was the week-long preparations that preceded the Christmas celebrations. Ahk never celebrated Christmas until he was released from his sarcophagus years ago so this was something he always looked forward to. The presents, the food, the dance party where he gets to DJ, he always loved it.

 

         The exhibits worked hard every night to make the museum ready for Christmas. The civil war guys are in charge of the meals. They may be faceless but they made some of the best food. Sacagawea supervises the Christmas party program and the decorations. Teddy keeps the neanderthals busy stringing popcorn. They mostly just eat it all anyway. Octavius and Jedediah make sure that Bronty, their favorite herbivore, doesn’t destroy any of the Christmas trees being brought in for inspection.

 

         Ahkmenrah, though he does little jobs every now and then, doesn’t have a particular role. The only thing he ever asks to do is to put the little angel on top of the Christmas tree. He did spend most of his time tailing Chris around as he makes sure everyone is doing their part. After an entire week, with the museum closed up for the holiday season, the interior of the building was absolutely breathtaking.

 

         Ahk hasn’t seen it yet though for he sat outside on the snow covered steps of the museum, his hands wrapped around a warm mug of hot chocolate and his mouth and nose was covered by a bright orange scarf. It was an early Christmas present from the miniatures. It was slightly shorter than the length of a regular scarf but Ahk recognized the hard work presented into each and every thread. He’s worn it everyday since the nights started getting colder.

 

         He never wore his usual garb when he went outside so he opted to wear an oversized, fuzzy, pink sweater, dark pants and brown boots. He found out that Chris and Nicole, for Christmas last year, gave him a full wardrobe whenever he felt like wearing modern day clothes. He was delighted to see that they gave him a full range of clothes, things he would casually browse through on the internet with Nicole, rather than give him some of the men’s wear in the department store.

 

         Sometimes him and Nicole matched.

 

         A sudden gust of cold wind made him shiver and press his fingers against the mug. He was waiting outside for almost an hour and he was hoping Chris would come out any second now. Chris told him he could only see the museum after everything was well prepared. He wasn’t really in the mood to argue, especially since he’s already placed the angel on top of the tree, so he just donned the first outfit he could think of, accepted the hot chocolate from the giddy night guard, and proceeded to wait outside.

 

         He didn’t have to wait any longer for Chris slipped out the front door and quietly tip-toed behind him. Ahk was too busy staring at the sky to notice and before he could, two hands covered his eyes. “Guess who?” A low voice whispered against Ahk’s ear but he was able to recognize who it was right away.

 

         “My idiot boyfriend?” He said as he placed his mug to the side.

 

         “I was hoping you would say my _totally adorable and super sexy boyfriend_ but I guess that works too.”

 

         Chris removed his hands and sat next to Ahk who just rolled his eyes. “Adorable and sexy shouldn’t be in the same sentence as you.” The 4000 year old pharaoh joked as he bumped shoulders with the blue eyed night guard. Chris only ducked his head and blushed into his fur-trimmed jacket hood.

 

         “But I am one of them right?”

 

         “I could give you adorable.”

 

         “What about sexy?” With that question, he wiggled his eyebrows and Ahk let out a breathy laugh.

 

         “Not even close, bad boy.” He patted Chris’ shoulder with an apologetic smile and looked behind him for a second. “Am I allowed to go in now?” After he asked that, Chris’ eyes lit up in excitement and he gestured to the front door with a little wiggle of his fingers.

 

         “Christmas awaits you, your grace.” Ahkmenrah chuckled and took Chris’ outstretched hand. The taller man tugged him a little bit too hard, which resulted in Ahkmenrah slamming into the night guard’s chest. Chris let out a painful “oof!” before he placed his hands on the waist of his shorter boyfriend to keep him from falling. “Woah! Sorry about that, sunshine. I got a little nervous.” Ahkmenrah blushed deeply as Chris’ thumbs rubbed soothing circles on his hips.

 

         “I-It’s alright. Shall we?” With his heart pumping hard and fast against his chest, the two walked in together with one of Chris’ arms wrapped around his shoulders. The minute they entered, Ahk’s eyes widened in surprise. Not only were there amazing Christmas decorations and the large tree standing in the middle but there was something else that caught his attention.

 

         Flowers. One flower for each person, animal, and statue that stood before them.

 

         He turned to Chris, wanting to ask him what was going on, when the man in question slowly stepped forward. Ahkmenrah counted exactly 5 and a half steps until Chris was right in front of him. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. He instead stared wide-eyed at the blond night guard, his jaw dropped so low it could touch the floor if it wanted to. “Ahkmenrah, we’ve known each other for roughly 5 years.”

 

         _Please don’t tell me what I think he’s doing._

 

“Within those 5 years, I left you here for 2. I found a job I thought I loved and I paid the price by almost losing you.” Chris took both of Ahk’s hands in one hand before he started getting down on one knee. Ahk could barely hear the rest of the museum whooping and yelling words of encouragement. If he was going to be honest, each sound made his facade crack even further. “But I didn’t lose you. In fact, I’m so glad to have you.”

 

         “I’ve been doing research on your tablet. Mind you, it took roughly 5 months for me to crack it. It took me another 2 months to figure out what I wanted it to do.” Chris ducked his head slightly to hide his blush but he continued on, a new flame burning in his heart. “I figured out how to make you human. As in, alive also in the morning.”

 

         _This can’t be happening._ Ahk’s head was spinning. He couldn’t see more than ten feet away and his eyes started to blur with tears. Chris mistook that as a good sign and smiled wider. “Believe me, it was the hardest thing I ever did. But honestly, I would carve your name on the _moon_ to show everyone in the world how much you mean to me.” That’s when Ahk’s blurry vision caught the movement of Chris’ hand towards his jacket pocket and his walls started to fall down.

 

         “Ahkmenrah, you’ve lived for the longest time without me but I can’t live any longer without you. I want you by my side, both in the museum and out. I want to kiss you, every night and every morning. I want Nicole to call you dad. I want to watch the sunset and sunrise with you. I want… a full life with _you_ in it.” His voice was thick with tears by this point and he started slowly taking out a small grey box from his pocket. He noticed that it was the same shade of grey as his eyes.

 

         “So let me just cut the crap and ask you this; Ahkmenrah, fourth king of the fourth king, ruler of _my heart_ …” He opened up the little box and there sat a beautiful silver ring with a small diamond sitting in the middle of the metal band. “Will you m--”

 

         His statement was cut short by Ahkmenrah pulling his hand away from his.

 

         “No.”

 

         The walls have broken down and his facade has shattered into a million pieces.

 

         “Ahk? What are you saying?” He turned his gaze away from Chris’ heartbroken expression, afraid that if he kept looking, he would make the wrong decision. He did enough damage to himself already.

 

         “No.” He said more firmly with his eyes still turned away from Chris.

 

         “Ahk… I-I don’t understand. I know how to make you _alive_ again, Ahk!” His voice was turned up a notch in volume which made Ahk shiver. “We could be together and you wouldn’t… You don’t have to… Goddamn it, Ahk! Look at me, please!” Chris tried to grab the pharaoh’s hands again but he was too quick this time. Ahk backed away, his eyes catching sight of a clear path, and bolted out of sight. He ran as far away as he could. Not to his exhibit, not to the night guard office, _anywhere_ but near Chris.

 

         As he ran, he didn’t notice the grey box that housed the supposed engagement ring fall to the floor.

* * *

 

         The sound of Ahkmenrah’s boots on the cold floor was the only sound he could hear.

 

         _I’m an idiot._

 

He ran faster and faster, tears blurring his vision the faster he ran.

 

         _You shouldn’t have pretended._

 

He tried to wipe the tears away with a sweater covered hand but more just kept taking its place.

 

         _This isn’t home. This isn’t where he belonged._

 

_Chris…_

 

Ahk pushed the exit door of the museum basement open and he was met with one gust of wind after another. He fell to his knees and started sobbing into his hands, his resolve melted all around him like the snow beneath his knees.

 

         _Chris deserved better than this._

 

As he sat hugging himself on the floor, his messed up mind started drifting towards Larry. “Fuck, I miss you so much.” He couldn’t help the stabbing pain of heartache as he remembered the night guard.  “I’m sorry Larry. I’m sorry Chris. I’m so so sorry…” He said more to himself than either of the night guards. Larry - whom he left back at home with bad blood between them - and Chris, the sweetest being who didn’t deserve to have his heart crushed by a stupid pharaoh.

 

         “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” He repeated out loud almost like a mantra as he clutched his head in between his hands. He tugged on his hair hard with his fingers and the pain from his head and his heart mixed together and he cried harder. His breathing was rapid and his tears flowed non-stop. “I’m so sorry.” He whispered with a broken voice before he hugged his knees together and sobbed violently.

 

         He didn’t know how long it was until he calmed down. He just knew it wasn’t 5 minutes, tops. This time, he knew Chris wouldn’t be running to check if he was okay. He knew Chris would have the entire museum backing him up. He ruined his entire life and he _fucking knew it._ “I shouldn’t have pretended to love you, Chris. I’m sorry.” He said to the wind, foolishly thinking that the breeze would whisper it in the blond man’s ear for him.

 

         “I don’t love you. It wasn’t hard to pretend to love you.” He started saying things off the top of his head now. He was too cowardly to face Chris himself so he just kept talking to the wind as it blew hard against his face. “You are one of the most amazing people I have ever met, Chris. I don’t deny ever being grateful to have known you.” He was rambling now, his words almost jumbling up in his brain but he kept going.

 

         “You are a wonderful father, a fantastic night guard and the most caring boyfriend. Anyone would be lucky to call you theirs. Unfortunately, I don’t want to be that person.” His voice cracked as he talked but he continued on. He didn’t notice the sound of snow being crushed underneath leather shoes behind him. He didn’t notice the hand reaching out to touch him but hovered unsurely above his shoulder.

 

         “I love another, Chris. I wish you would understand that. I wish you knew the pain that I felt as I kissed you pretending it was him. I wish you knew the times I die a little every time you hold me close, knowing his arms weren’t the ones around me. I wish you knew, Chris… I’m tired of pretending. I’m tired of giving you nothing when you have given me your entire heart! I’m so _fucking_ tired…” His breath hitched in his throat at the last statement and he covered his mouth with his sweater sleeve.

 

         The sound of snow scraping across the stone steps harshly broke him out of his state and he looked up to see the very man he was addressing. Chris stood there with red-rimmed eyes that refused to look at him and a trembling lip. Other than that, he looked very composed as he slowly went down the steps to sit next to the crying pharaoh. With him closer, Ahk noticed that his hands were shaking as he tried to regain his normal breathing pattern.

 

         He didn’t place his own hands on top of his anymore.

 

         They sat in silence for a full minute before Chris took a deep breath and spoke. “I came here practically determined to hate you.” Ahk’s heart pinched sadly at that but he didn’t interrupt. “I had an entire script in my head. I wanted to say how selfish you are. How… heartless you are. I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs and make sure the entire world knows how callous you are.” After what seemed like an internal debate, Chris finally looked up at him and his eyes softened to see Ahk’s own still filled with tears.

 

         “But I can’t do that. God knows I can’t _ever_ hate you.” He shook his head and Ahk let out a disconsolate whimper. “And after hearing your confession out here--”

 

         “How much did you hear?” Ahk asked, a tone of desperation in his voice.

 

         “I heard it all.” Chris reached his hand out towards Ahkmenrah’s face but he put it down immediately. He knew that if he touched him now, he would be going down another slippery slope. “I’m not here to convince you to marry me. Because that would be a dick move.” Ahk despite himself chuckled a bit at Chris’ use of garish words. “I’m here to listen to you.” He fully turned his body to face Ahk with a determined expression.

 

         “Tell me everything I need to hear.”

 

         So tell him he did.

* * *

         Within another 2 months, Chris came to Ahkmenrah with news.

 

         “I think I know how to get you back home.” The joy in the pharaoh’s eyes was unmistakable and Chris’ heart jumped knowing Ahk will finally be happy again.

 

         Even if it meant he will be happy without him.

* * *

         It turns out that Ahkmenrah just needs to read certain parts of the tablet in a particular order and it would transport him back home. It sounded anti-climactic but he was definitely not complaining about it. The alternative was to go through another 5 universes and Ahk was absolutely _done_ with doing any of that shit. He’s been done with it since his entire trip even _started._

 

         So with the help of a certain historian, Cecil Fredericks, a former museum docent and Chris himself, he was able to figure out what to say and how to say it. All they had to do was wait for the full moon and he would be set to go back to his own universe. Ahk could have jumped for joy. What was stopping him anyway? He was finally going back home. Back to the museum, to shenanigans with the miniatures, to soccer games with the Huns.

 

         And most importantly, back to Larry.

 

         Before he knew it, the day of the full moon has come and this version of the museum said their goodbyes.

 

         Chris was able to explain to them what was going on and they fully supported Ahkmenrah afterwards even if initially they wanted to smash his face against every wall of the museum. Teddy and Sacagawea hugged him tightly and they made him promise to take care of himself. Jedediah and Octavius presented him gifts, Jedediah’s helmet and Octavius’ cowboy hat in a small string bag, to remember them by and “To show this other Jed and Octavius who is the real dynamic duo!”

 

         The neanderthals spit in his hand and clapped while laughing and jumping gleefully. At least he knows that they don’t hate him. The civil war guys saluted him as he left the museum and Dixie gave him a kiss on the cheek before scrambling down his leg and on to the floor. Bronty nuzzled him on the cheek before he went out. He said his goodbyes to the rest of the exhibits for another 5 minutes before he walked out the front door. The last one he promised to give his farewell to was Chris.

 

         The museum was closed for the night, as requested by Chris to a suspicious McPhee, so they were alone. Chris held the tablet in his arms as he waited for Ahkmenrah on the steps. “Did you say goodbye to everyone?”

 

         “Didn’t miss a miniature.”

 

         “Then I think this is yours.” Chris handed him the tablet and Ahkmenrah smiled at the familiar weight in his hands. “So this is it.” Ahk looked up from the tablet to smile sadly at the blond night guard. If anyone asked him if he’s moved on, he will say no. He hasn’t moved on. Anyone can see it in his bright blue eyes that Chris will take much longer to move on. Who could blame him? He’s losing the only love he’s ever had. He’s giving him up to bring him back to another man in an _entirely different universe._

 

         If the roles were switched, Ahk would feel the exact same way.

 

         “You take care of yourself, okay Chris?”

 

         “Yeah don’t worry. I haven’t lost my appetite for chicken nuggets so I’ll still be eating.”

 

         “No that’s not what I meant.” After 3 months of refusing to even let their hands brush against each other, Ahk finally held his hand again. Chris looked distressed for a second before he squeezed his hand in reassurance. “You will remain to be the kindest and sweetest man I have ever had the privilege to meet. Though it may have been pretend, it was an honor to love you. It was my pleasure to be your boyfriend.”

 

         “But you love someone else.” Chris said with a resigned but understanding tone.

 

         Ahk gave him an empathetic smile but nodded in agreement. “You are wonderful, Chris.” He slipped his hand out of Chris’ and placed it on his cheek. “I wish you every happiness.” he whispered and gave him one last lingering kiss. Chris smiled sadly into the kiss, stopping himself from chasing the pharaoh’s lips as he pulled away. He slowly removed his hand from the blond man’s cheek and placed it on top of the tablet.

 

         “I hope you find someone you could give that beautiful engagement ring to.”

 

         “I hope that Larry guy gives you the kind of ring you deserve.”

 

         Ahk chuckled at the thought of Larry giving him a ring at all. It’s not that it wasn’t possible, the incident on Christmas convinced him that it could _very well_ be possible, but Larry giving him anything fancy was funny to him. “What’s so funny?” asked Chris with a curious tilt of his head.

 

         “Nothing it’s just…” He stopped another giggle from coming up his throat before continuing. “You don’t know Larry. He’s more of a..." Ahk racked his brain for any ridiculous situations Larry would be in. "...neck pillow in exchange for a sun scepter of the gods kind of guy.”

 

         Chris’ mouth formed into an ‘o’ and he nodded in understanding. “So he’s the kind of guy who would take you to Pizza Hut on the first date?”

 

         “Bingo! We have a winner!” Ahk said with a finger pointing to the sky and the two laughed together.

 

         The pair’s laughter was cut short, however, when the clouds above them moved to reveal the full moon shining bright in the sky. Ahkmenrah was the first to look up and he never noticed the way Chris was just staring at him, memorizing the beauty of the pharaoh that he once belonged to before he would disappear forever. “I believe that is my cue.” Ahk whispered and he looked at the blond with his lower lip between his teeth. “So I guess this is goodbye.”

 

         “I guess so.”

 

         “Goodbye, Chris.”

 

         It took Chris a few seconds before he registered what Ahkmenrah just said to him. “G-Goodbye, Ahkmenrah. Tell Larry I said to treat you right.” The pharaoh punched him playfully in the arm before he looked back down at the tablet and started to read the hieroglyphs needed. Once he was finished, a small fleck of light appeared in the middle of the tablet and it started to swirl up into a tiny golden twister.

 

         The golden twister separated into individual strings of golden light and each one surrounded Ahkmenrah until he was almost completely engulfed in its embrace. There was a small opening where he could see what was outside of his golden shell and he saw Chris giving him a watery smile. Ahkmenrah smiled back and mouthed a _‘thank you’_ to him before the last string of golden light obscured his vision. His limbs started tingling with excitement as the tablet worked its magic.

 

         He was finally on his way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me, what do you ship now?
> 
> Because I'm just as confused as I hope you are.


	7. The One Where It's Finally Over

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahkmenrah is on his way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at that! It's the end! How the hell did that happen? I don't know.
> 
> But THANK YOU for reading this! This fic is like one of my babies and I will cherish it forever. 
> 
> Here is the final chapter! Enjoy <3

It was his smoothest trip yet.

 

         There was no loud banging, no imaginary hooks pulling his navel, no stabbing pain in his abdomen, nothing. In fact, Ahkmenrah felt like he was floating on top of the ocean, waiting patiently as he’s washed upon the shores. He didn’t know why this last trip made him feel so… blissful. Maybe it was because he didn’t have to guess which universe he was going to be transported to next or be unsure of whether or not he was going home.

 

         This time, he was very sure he was coming home.

 

         No dread, no worries, no pain. His mind was in a completely calm state when before a million and one thought always ran through it. For now though, only one thought drifted to the front of his mind and he wasn’t surprised when it happened to be about Larry Daley. He smiled subconsciously as a shiver ran through his body. The tablet must still be working its magic. He doesn’t know how long he has been here but he figured he probably has a little more time to think

 

         Naturally he started thinking of what happened in his last trip.

 

         10 months. That’s how long he was there. 10 months, 12 days, 6 hours, 9 minutes and 33 seconds to be exact but who was counting? That was the longest time he’s ever been in a universe other than his own and he still couldn’t figure out why. There were so many questions in his mind that his head was starting to spin. However, he knew he would never get the answers to them.

 

         _Why is my time in every succeeding universe longer than the last?_

 

_What other things is this tablet capable of doing?_

 

_Why did it decide to transport only me through several dimensions?_

 

_Why have me figure out how to do things on my own?_

 

_Why?_

 

That’s when the pain kicked in.

 

         If he was being honest, he was waiting for it to happen. This journey was rough from the start; it would make sense if it was rough until the end. This was almost like a pit stop for the tablet. Soon enough, the familiar invisible hook was at his navel and his screams of pain were only caught in his throat. The sensation of being sucked into himself came back and all he could do was close his eyes and hope that he would have a soft landing.

 

         _I guess I’ll never know why._

* * *

         He should just give up.

 

         It’s been a month and Ahkmenrah still isn’t back. He’s done everything, research, trying to learn ancient Egyptian, screaming at the tablet to bring him back - none of them worked. The screaming was almost like a last resort for everything he’s done. He knows he’s scaring some of the exhibits with his frequent freak-outs. Teddy called it understandable. Sacagawea called it a bad aura. Octavius called it an internal war.

 

         He called it absolute misery.

 

         A month. It is an entire fucking month without Ahkmenrah. At first he freaked out about the fact that maybe _one of his best friends was gone without a trace_. The second thing he worried about was how he was going to tell this to McPhee. The solution? He didn’t. He had the miniatures and Civil War guys help him dress a mannequin he bought off of eBay with the bandages the pharaoh left behind. That happened 2 days after the incident.

 

         After a week, he had to explain to McPhee why the “actor” for Pharaoh Ahkmenrah wasn’t in the museum (“He’s our most attractive exhibit, Daley! Where else can you get someone who looks exactly like the pharaoh? Tinder? OkCupid? FindMeAPharaoh.com?”) but he was able to handle it without having McPhee’s head explode.

 

         That wasn’t the worst of it though.

 

         Whenever Larry came back home the next morning, he would stand in the middle of his apartment living room, stare at the space around him and not move for another 5 minutes. It takes him 10 more minutes to move his legs enough to sit on the couch. It takes him 20 minutes to start feeling again. It takes no time at all to start crying. The corners of his eyes would prick with the first few tears, then suddenly he’s hugging himself and muffling his sobs because Nicky is sleeping in the next room after a long night of being a DJ.

 

         Nicky, of course, always wakes up when he hears his father lock the front door. He would wait, sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed, until he hears the unfortunately familiar cries echo softly in the hallway. He would always tiptoe into the kitchen to get a glass of water before sitting next to his father. Larry would at first push him away but he eventually would give in and let his son comfort him. He would feel embarrassed obviously. His own son was seeing him at his weakest point when he should look strong.

 

         But Nicky knew better. Nicky always knew better.

 

         He would ask if Ahk would be back.

 

         Larry would answer, “I don’t know.”

* * *

 

         The sun just set and the museum was closed for the weekend but Larry still came.

 

         It was part of his job description to come to work on weekends. Not like he ever minded. It was a job he loved to do with people he cared about. Working extra hours was nothing to him.

 

         But lately he wasn’t feeling it.

 

         It was because of Ahkmenrah. Of course it was because of Ahkmenrah. He would always arrive at the museum with a hopeful smile because maybe today was the day Ahk would be back. However one sad look from Teddy would tell him that no, he wasn’t back yet. Naturally, he sat in front of the golden tablet mounted on the wall with the same glare and the same annoyed purse of his lips at the gold slab of trash that somehow made his life a little bit harder.

 

         “Would it kill you to at least tell me why you took him and not me?”

 

         Silence.

 

         “I bet you’re a joy at parties.” He said sarcastically at the tablet. Still, it didn’t answer him. What did he expect from a 4000-year-old hunk of metal that was sometimes sentient? “I’m talking like a madman again, am I?” He said more to himself than to the tablet. “Well I get nervous about things I don’t understand. You probably got a kick out of it my first day here, huh? I bet you love just driving me close to the edge.”

 

         He stared at the tablet for a long time before sighing in frustration. “Look, I get it. I was an asshole to Ahk and I should have handled his… confession a little bit more maturely.” He stood up and started pacing the space in front of the hieroglyph wall. “I imagined a lot of things going wrong after Ahk told me he had feelings for me. Still, I never imagined this.” He gestured lazily around the empty Egyptian exhibit. “I expected him maybe to run away to the roof or outside. But then him suddenly disappearing? Not cool at all!” He pointed an accusatory finger at the tablet at that.

 

         “Not only that, oh glorious tablet of the ancient world, I have no idea how to get him back! It’s not like there is a lost and found for centuries old _mummified beings_ in New York! Guess when _that_ ever happened?” A beat of silence passed before he scoffed. _I’m going crazy._ “That’s right! Never! It’s all thanks to you that I’m actually considering opening one in Central Park with a sign that reads _‘Lost Pharaoh. Please return to Museum of Natural History before sunrise’._ ”

 

         _I’m definitely going crazy._

 

“That’s the thing about lost stuff. You’ll never know if they return.” Larry said with resignation.

 

         He stared at the tablet for who knows how long before sitting back down on the floor. “I’m talking to a literal wall. Who knew I could stoop this low?” Just as he was about to stand back up, he did have a job to do, the floor beneath him started shaking. At first it was a small rumble but after a few seconds, it turned into something like an earthquake. The only indication that told him it wasn’t a real earthquake was the fact that only the Egyptian exhibit was shaking. The Jackal guards outside looked perfectly stable.

 

         The only logical thing to do was to cling as hard as he could to the trembling floor and wait the whole thing out. Nothing seemed to be moving out of place but his vision was blurring in a matter of seconds. He closed his eyes tight, praying to whoever was listening to make this quick. He never noticed the way the tablet started glowing.

 

            Suddenly it all stopped.

 

            He opened one eye and took a peak of his surroundings. After a few seconds, he slowly, shakily, started standing up with his hands stretched to his sides for balance. He fully opened both eyes once he was sure that he wouldn’t fall on his face immediately and when he did, he almost couldn’t believe what he saw. He rubbed his eyes probably a thousand times before they were able to focus properly. But there was no mistaking that smile.

 

            “Hello, Larry.”

           

            He didn’t know what pushed him to do it but he did it anyway. He launched himself towards the figure in front of him and hugged him tight. His heart filled with warmth and joy when the missing pharaoh hugged him back and let out a breathy laugh. “You’re back! Oh my God _you’re actually back!”_ The laughter from the pharaoh only increased as Larry lifted him up and spun him around in glee. It didn’t take long for him to put him down though; his back was a sore victim of his actions.

 

         When he finally placed Ahk back on his feet, he couldn’t help but give him the biggest smile he could muster. “You’re here.” He whispered in awe, caressing Ahkmenrah’s face tenderly as he tried to hold back tears. He stared long and hard into the former pharaoh’s eyes and he knew he wanted to talk to him properly. No. He _needed_ to talk to him properly. He may be smiling now but they parted first on a bad note and he is determined to make it right.

 

         Ahkmenrah, however, only smiled back at him for now. It made him wonder about what he’s been through to smile at him like that.

 

         “I’m here.”

* * *

 

         Needless to say, the entire museum rejoiced at Ahkmenrah’s return.

 

         He was pulled into all directions, into many hugs, and on top of several shoulders. He lost count how many times the Huns lifted him up on their shoulders and threw their fists in the air like they won a mighty war. He wasn’t sure how many exhibits hugged him or punched him hard on the arm. He’s also pretty sure some of the Mayan Miniatures threw their spears at his heel. Nevertheless, he knew this was what it felt like to belong again. This is where he was supposed to be.

 

         This was home.

 

         Of course the entire museum knew that Ahkmenrah needed a break, especially considering he’s been missing for a month, so they let him go about his business after an hour of greeting him. As much as he loved them all, he was relieved when he didn’t have to answer the same questions again. It was getting quite crowded around him and it took Teddy to see he was starting to get a little anxious. He still wasn’t fond of tight spaces. One would think several interdimensional trips would help alleviate that fear but in reality it made it a whole lot worse.

 

         Still, he would rather go back to his own sarcophagus again than be transported to another universe any time soon.

 

         “So I was the centurion in your last trip? _Hoowee_ that must have been mighty strange for you to see, Ahkmenrah!” Jedediah said from his position on his shoulder. He showed him the helmet that Jedediah from the other universe gave him as a memoir and the miniature cowboy had it in his hands. He removed his hat and replaced it with the helmet and threw Octavius, who was standing beside him, a cocky smile.

 

         “Don’t I look pretty?” He wiggled his eyebrows at the unamused Roman.

 

         “Absolutely dashing, Jedediah.” Octavius replied while he gestured for Ahk to give him the cowboy hat. He removed his helmet and put the Stetson on. It was Jedediah’s turn to look unamused. “What about me? Am I rugged, now?” He did his best efforts to sound like his cowboy best friend, which resulted in a surprisingly deep blush forming on the blond man’s cheeks.

 

         “Y-Yeah. Real rugged, partner.”

 

         Just as Ahk was about to tease them a little further, he spotted Larry walk by quickly. He pursed his lips slightly and tilted his head to the side in confusion. After everyone else in the museum found out he was back, Larry stepped to the side and disappeared into the crowd. Ahk wasn’t stupid. He knew that when his little alternate reality adventures started, him and Larry weren’t exactly on the best terms.

 

         “Hey Ahk!”

 

         The former pharaoh was taken out of his thoughts when he heard Jedediah’s voice near his ear. “Go talk to gigantor. He was a downright mess when you disappeared.” Ahk’s eye glazed slightly with waiting tears as he glanced at the direction Larry came from. “Nicky told Teddy that he’s been cryin’ every morning.”

 

         “Yes, your grace.” Octavius agreed with a sad shake of his head, his eyes focused on a single bead from Ahkmenrah’s neck collar. “He brings in all these books on hieroglyphics and he researches on the computer all the time. Topics like _‘Ancient Egyptian artifacts’_ and _‘Pharaoh Ahkmenrah era’._ Were the frequent entries in the internet history.”

 

         “I’d say he even went as far as scream at that gosh darn tablet of yours.”

 

         “It scared some of the Huns.”

 

         “Even Dexter left him alone when he did that.”

 

         Hearing all of this from the two made his head spin and his throat dry. “I didn’t think he missed me that much.” He said with a shake of his head and Jedediah looked at him incredulously.

 

         “You kidding me, kemosabe? He missed you the most.”

* * *

 

         “Larry, can we talk?”

 

         The night guard watched as Ahkmenrah closed the door behind him. The former pharaoh bit his lower lip for a second before he looked up at Larry with unsure eyes. “I want to tell you a few things. I hope you don’t mind.”

 

         “Of course, Ahk. I’m willing to listen.”

 

            _Listen._

 

Larry sat down on the couch pushed against the wall of the office and gestured for Ahk to sit down as well. It took the better part of a minute for him to finally sit next to him. Larry noticed his hands were shaking and his eyes darted from side to side nervously, his back still ramrod straight. Larry felt the overwhelming urge to hold his hands but he didn’t do it. He needed to hear what Ahk has to say first before he would do anything else.

 

         He was not in the mood for a repeat of what happened between them.

 

         “When I talked about what happened to me when I disappeared, I noticed you weren’t there.” He looked at the night guard carefully before he continued. It looked as if he was picking out his words delicately. “The tablet… well it took me to places I didn’t even think existed.” Then Ahk launched into a long, epic story about alternate universes. He described each adventure in such explicit detail that Larry felt that he was there with him.

 

         “The thing is… there was always one constant in all of the dimensions I visited.”

 

         Truth be told, after hearing Ahk’s tales of wonder, Larry was intrigued to know what that constant was. “And what was that?”

 

         “In every universe, I still manage to love you in more ways than one.”

 

         Silence was met with his answer and Ahk only took that as a sign to keep going.

 

         “One would think after seeing several versions of you, I would grow bored. But that wasn’t the case for me.” Ahk shifted his position so that he was fully facing Larry now, unaware of the rapid beating of the night guard’s heart. “I learned that no matter where I go, whatever the situation may be, I would always be led back to you. Even in the universe where you were not present…” A small smile graced his lips at what Larry guessed was a bittersweet memory.

 

         “So I would like to say I’m sorry.”

 

         That one he didn’t expect at all.

 

         “I’m sorry for pushing my feelings and acting rather immature when you rejected me. I understand. You don’t want another relationship. After everything you’ve been through, you don’t deserve more heartache. Not you. Never you.” That’s when Larry decided to just fuck it all and hold Ahk’s hands in his own. The pharaoh looked as if he was about to say something but ended up rather surprised at the warmth that enveloped his hands.

 

         “You weren’t the only one who acted irrational that night.” Larry faced Ahkmenrah properly before continuing. “I was scared to say the least. I didn’t know how it would work out. I mean, you’re a 4000-year-old undead pharaoh who is only alive at night. I work as a night guard slightly above minimum wage.” Larry’s nerves eased a bit when a chuckle escaped Ahk’s lips. He could do this.

 

         _Communicate._

 

“But during the month that you were gone - practically almost a year for you - I started to realize something I should have realized before. I thought maybe if I did realize it then, you would still be here. You wouldn’t be gone.” Ahk was staring at him intensely with his large grey eyes, his encouraging gaze giving him the strength to keep going. “I wasn’t scared of being in another relationship, Ahk. I was scared of ever having to let go of you if we went into one.”

         “After your story, I’m still pretty scared.” He took a few seconds of staring back into Ahk’s mesmerizing grey eyes before he placed a soft kiss on his knuckles. He smiled slightly at the light blush that appeared on the pharaoh’s cheeks. “But I’m willing to take the risk for you. Isn’t that how it’s always been? I’m willing to start something with you if you still want me. If you still--”

 

         “Love you?” said Ahk in a tone barely above a whisper.

 

         “Yeah… If you still love me.”

 

         Only after an entire minute of silence did Ahkmenrah speak to him again. This time, his words were more spontaneous than a few minutes ago. “I already said that in every universe, I have loved you.” Ahk removed one of his hands from in between Larry’s and placed it on the curve of the night guard’s neck. He lightly played with the tiny strands of hair at the back of his head and smiled when Larry closed his eyes to the touch.

 

         “In this universe, it is no different.”

 

         Then he leaned forward slowly, the exact same way he did with the Larry in ancient Egypt, and when he showed no signs of pulling away, he pressed their lips together. At first it was soft and gentle, almost as if Larry was scared that he would break Ahk at any second. That didn’t happen though instead Ahk moved closer to him, his arms draped over the brunette’s shoulders. Soon enough, Ahk was straddling him, their kiss never breaking and their gentle passion never fading.

 

         When they finally pulled away after what felt like hours, Larry pressed his forehead against the pharaoh’s and smiled blissfully. If this is what he was truly missing then he never wanted to let it go. The way Ahk’s body melted against his, their breathing mingling between them, their limbs tangled above the course couch cushions all felt absolutely _right_. Everything about Ahk, from his fingers, to his mouth to the way his eyes sparkle in the dim office light was so gorgeous that he was afraid that he accidentally walked into a constellation. Nobody has ever looked and felt so beautiful.

 

         What they had right here, their hearts pressed close together and noses brushed against each other softly, was beautiful. What they shared now, and hopefully in many more nights to come, was beautiful. He would soon long for the soft caresses and sweet kisses every night. He would soon explore every inch of Ahkmenrah’s body, soul and mind and it would be so beautiful. When Ahk smiled down at him, he couldn’t help but give him another quick kiss on those alluring lips.

 

         “What are you thinking about?” Ahk whispered with a teasing tone as he ran his hand through the night guard’s hair affectionately.

 

         Larry only stared into the eyes of the pharaoh that seemed to hold all the stars in the night sky and grinned.

 

         “Something beautiful.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think? Don't leave me hangin'!


End file.
